For many in our region, the St. Cloud area is a great place to live, learn, work and play. Yet, some of the community members invited to attend community conversations said that they faced profound and persistent inequities – which will threaten our collective prosperity. This report summarizes the key findings collected from the six conversations convened by the Central Minnesota Community Foundation (CMCF) with support from Filsan Talent Partners.
The convenings took place between January and June 2022. The primary purpose of the first four convenings was to invite diverse residents from across the St. Cloud area to discuss the challenges they encounter in experiencing racial inequities in the fields of education, healthcare, housing, economy, employment practices, and community engagement; and to offer recommendations for potential innovative, and/or pragmatic change. The final two convenings allowed newly formed organic action groups based on each topic area an opportunity to begin the action planning process with strategic assistance from experienced facilitators. Action groups concluded the program with tentative action plans and a renewed commitment to advancing racial equity in a key area informed by earlier conversations.
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Racial Equity Community Assessment
The Central Minnesota Community Foundation is gathering information from nonprofit organizations who are working to address racial equity in the Greater St. Cloud area. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive picture of our community and plan to reduce disparities through education, innovative programming and systemic change.
Organizations wishing to include their plans to build racial equity may send an email to [email protected].
To view the current results of our finding, click the link below.
RACIAL EQUITY COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT
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Greater St. Cloud Equity Dashboard
This dashboard brings together data on disparities and inequities that exist in the Greater St. Cloud region. Minnesota Compass, a project of Wilder Research, developed this dashboard report with support from the Morgan Family Foundation. To develop this dashboard, Minnesota Compass staff conducted listening sessions with St. Cloud area residents in fall 2020 to learn about the information and data residents wanted to see in the dashboard, including ideas for solutions in the Greater St. Cloud area. Following the listening sessions, an advisory committee guided Minnesota Compass staff on the development of the dashboard, including its structure, content, and framework. By and large, data were assembled from existing data sources, supplemented with individual stories from discussion groups and interviews with diverse communities. Advancing social equity and reducing disparities in the Greater St. Cloud, Minnesota, region requires a common understanding among organizations, community leaders, and residents of the disparities that exist. Equipped with credible data, communities are better equipped to identify and evaluate strategies, policies, and programs to address disparities. To view the full dashboard click the link below.