Department Feature: Howard University Community Association

Building Bridges Between Howard University and Residents

The Howard University Community Association, located on Georgia Avenue, has an open door policy with the University’s neighbors and has begun to establish a more healthy, respectful and responsive relationship with Ledroit Park, Pleasant Plains, Bloomingdale and Shaw community members.  According to Maybelle Taylor Bennett, Director of the Community Association, the University is progressively meeting the expectations of its neighboring communities by keeping an open dialogue with residents.

“Over the past sixteen years, our neighbors have gone from being openly hostile to being cautiously optimistic,” said Bennett.

Since its inception in 1996, the University has implemented a wide range of initiatives in the community, including the LeDroit Park Initiative, Project C.H.A.N.G.E, and the Jumpstart/AmeriCorps Early Childhood Program.  Equally important, the Community Association acts as an information clearinghouse for members of the public interested in taking part in University-sponsored programs.  Through their facilitation of quarterly Community Advisory Committee meetings and their participation in community-focused forums, the Community Association staff directly engages its neighbors.

The LeDroit Park Initiative was launched in 1995 in an effort to reverse the widespread disinvestment that took place in the area in the preceding decades. In partnership with the Fannie Mae Corporation and the Fannie Mae Foundation, the Association facilitated the renovation of 28 unoccupied homes and the construction of 12 new homes on in-fill vacant lots to create mixed-income home ownership opportunities for University faculty, staff and members of the community-at-large.  In addition, partnerships with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and area community development corporations resulted in the assisted redevelopment of an additional 30 new and renovated housing units for low and moderate-income families. 

Infrastructure improvements also took place in partnership with the District of Columbia’s Department of Public Works, the D.C. Department of Transportation, and the U.S. Department of Transportation, which included road reconstruction, landscaping, the bricking of sidewalks, the installation of traffic calming measures, and new street lighting.  Today, LeDroit Park is once again the subject of robust community reinvestment, with increased home ownership and rich cultural diversity.

The Community Association also extends its reach through Project C.H.A.N.G.E., a volunteer placement program that gives Howard University students the opportunity to:  tutor and mentor children in the D.C. public school system; provide assistance to low income senior citizens with limited mobility; and volunteer in local health clinics.

“We registered 117 students to volunteer for the ‘07/’08 academic year,” says Jacob Ortiz, Associate Director for Community Services at the Association.  “These students are helping us maintain very close ties with our community partners.”

The University’s Jumpstart Early Childhood Affiliate Program was piloted in 2001 and is also a part of the Community Association’s program.  Sponsored by the Corporation for National Service’s AmeriCorp program,  Jumpstart prepares three to five-year-old children for entry into elementary school.  Each child that is identified as a special needs student by an educator, is paired up with a Howard student.  Student volunteers commit several hours each week to helping their respective mentee build language, literacy and social skills.  Three elementary schools are currently Jumpstart sites:  Bruce-Monroe, H.D. Cooke, and Seaton. 

More recently, the Jumpstart site manager entered into a new partnership with the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation’s Education Office that will allow them to work with children in child care and after school learning programs at the Banneker Recreation Center. According to Ortiz, the level of participation by Howard students in the Jumpstart program has increased significantly. 

“I am pleased to report that student participation has more than doubled since we began five years ago,” says Ortiz.

In addition to the Community Association’s community planning and development and school- and agency-based initiatives, the Association also sponsors several community service projects throughout the year, including the recent Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Service clothing drive to assist community members most in need.

“We are promoting a day of service across the nation,” says Ortiz.  “Our campaign is about having a day “on,” not a day “off.” It’s a day “on” remembering his legacy, and a day “on” putting into practice his philosophy of service in the community.”

As an information clearinghouse, the Community Association annually updates a listing of over 100 University-sponsored programs, activities and services that are open to the public in a publication entitled Service, and connects interested individuals with them as they receive inquiries.

The Community Association’s direct community engagement takes place in Community Advisory Committee meetings that are held quarterly.  Additionally, the Association’s staff participates in community-based forums that are held outside of the University.  These gatherings keep area stakeholders informed of the University’s priorities and projects, and in turn, keeps the University informed about the concerns of the community.  This ongoing exchange helps to build trust, establishes a more healthy town-gown dynamic, and fosters mutual respect among all of the parties involved.