EOI Big Win Projects

The EOI program has transitioned from Coaches facilitating workshops to EOI teams working independently on Big Win projects. Each EOI team has a Coach to support their work:

 

Small Business Team:

• Silvia Guzman
• Bre Williams
• Ivey Williams
• Jessica Vechakul (Coach)

 

Parent Education Team:

• Flor Chavez
• Laura Chavez
• Yolanda Castillo
• Rachel Berkowitz (Coach)

 

Empowering Community Team:

• LaShonda Deckard
• Aaron De La Cerda
• Maria Teresa Murillo
• Zach Fernandez (Coach)

 

I will be reporting on the Small Business team’s progress.

Starting the Big Win: Getting to know your team… and your fruit

Dozens of brightly colored sticky notes covered the walls as the EOIs brainstormed questions related to the priority areas of public safety, community building, education, and local economy. The EOIs generated 154 questions based on community assessments and the EOIs own experiences of living in Castlemont. The EOIs grouped similar questions into 21 topic areas, and each EOI voted on the topics they passionately wanted to address.

For a glimpse of the process, these are a small sample of the questions:

• How might we reduce gang violence?
• How might we bring people together across cultures?
• How might we help parents stay involved in their child’s education?
• How might we encourage local buying, producing, and selling?

Through a matching process that aimed to give EOIs their top pick, the following teams were formed:

• Revolution/ Empowering Community with LaShonda Deckard, Aaron De La Cerda, and Maria Teresa Murillo
• Parent Education with Yolanda Castillo, Flor Chavez, and Laura Chavez.
• Small Business Development with Silvia Guzman, Bre Williams, and Ivey Williams

The EOI will continue using the design thinking process to more deeply understand these issues, generate and test ideas, and implement solutions. Using the experience that they have gained during the Quick Win, the EOIs will lead this process and determine the direction of their projects. Already beginning to drive the process, Aaron (an EOI) coined the term “Big Win” to describe the efforts over the next five months to develop and implement projects that will have sustainable impact.

To get to know each other better, the Coaching Team and EOIs took a quick test to identify our Fruit Personality Types. Each participant ranks sets of characteristics (e.g., imaginative, investigative, realistic, analytical) according to how closely it describes him or her, and the test identifies the participant as matching one of four personality types or a hybrid of two. Whether we’re a grape, banana, orange, melon, or fruit hybrid, we contribute diverse skills and experiences to our team. The Coaching Team and EOI teams have different cultural, occupational, and community leadership backgrounds. These differences will enrich project outcomes, and also help us support each other in growing.

 

Thinking about how to manage and maximize the benefits of these differences, the EOIs discussed the collective strengths and challenges of their teams:

“We may be too easy-going and hesitant to say some things, but we will encourage each other to speak our truth.”

The EOIs will be continuing to bond as a team and develop their skills as they move forward in the Understand Phase. Check back in to hear what we learn in the coming weeks.

EOI Quick Win: Clean Up the Block Party

Sixty people attended the Clean Up the Block Party hosted by the EOIs, Youth UpRising, and the Castlemont Community Market last Saturday, August 2^nd.

 

The Clean Up the Block Party was the culmination of the EOI’s Quick Win. The EOIs had spent six weeks learning and using the design thinking process to address the issue of illegal trash and dumping. They walked throughout Castlemont talking to folks and seeing the piles of trash from a new perspective. They brainstormed ideas for how to improve this problem in a visible way that could be planned and implemented quickly. The Block Party was a way to raise awareness about the issue and provide people with quick and easy ways to start making a difference.

As folks walked up to Youth UpRising, they were flanked on both sides with friendly people selling jewelry, knitted items, food, and more. Some friends and families sat on the grass and in the shade of trees to enjoy their tasty treats.

“How do you cook winter squash?”

“Cut the squash in half. Scoop out the seeds. Season with olive oil and garlic. Bake it like a potato.”

“SeeClickFix, it really works! Download the App, and take a picture of trash on the street. And the City will clean it up!”

These were just some of the conversations at the Block Party .

The EOIs gave Block Party participants information about:

• Separating trash, recycling, and compost
• Reporting illegal dumping
• Proper disposal of batteries and motor oil
• Organizations that pick up old furniture and appliances
• Environmentally-friendly alternatives for household cleaning chemicals

Project Eat provided resources on growing and eating healthy food. Thanks to a generous donation from Occupy the Farm, participants could take home a bag of free produce, including cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, peppers, pumpkins, and squash. The EOIs also gave away bags of canned goods, and baby food and supplies for families. Some lucky folks also got to take home raffle prizes of toys, clothes, and food.

Several new families joined in the East Oakland Community Playdate, where toys were provided for families to play together. The bouncy castle was also a special treat that delighted the kids. The blue and green castle danced to the mix of salsa and jazz as children jumped and giggled inside.

Several volunteers from Youth UpRising slipped into yellow safety vests and joined the Toler Heights Neighborhood Council to pick up street trash starting at 9:00am. Their hard work continued through the afternoon and yielded three 40-gallon trash bags and cleaner streets. A few days later, one of the EOIs ran into two of the youth volunteers, and they pulled wrappers out of their pockets. They were still cleaning up the streets!

By working together, we gained more momentum than any one of us could have done alone. The EOIs learned about organizing events and connecting with the community, and they grew stronger as a team. We will take these lessons and skills forward with us as we launch our Big Win projects.

Thank you to all the organizations and people that made this possible: East Oakland Innovators, Youth UpRising, the Castlemont Community Market, East Oakland Community Playdate, Toler Heights Neighborhood Council, Project Eat, and Occupy the Farm.

http://www.eastoaklandcommunityplaydate.org/

http://seeclickfix.com/oakland

http://projecteat.acoe.org/

http://www.takebackthetract.com/