Overview Inc.

- Community Needs Assessment

Focus Group among Community Leaders
Prepared by: Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
March 2019
Table of contents
 Background & Methodology - Slide 3
 Top community needs – unaided responses - Slide 4
 Community challenges faced by youth - Slide 5
 Community challenges faced by adults - Slide 6
 Community challenges faced by single parents - Slide 7
 Community challenges faced by seniors - Slide 8
 Proposed solutions to youth challenges - Slide 9
 Proposed solutions to parent challenges - Slide 10
 Proposed solutions to adult challenges - Slide 11 & 12
 Proposed solutions to adult challenges - verbatim responses - Slide 13
 Summary of top 3 most important community challenges - Slide 14

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Background & Methodology
Overview, Inc.’s mission is to identify problems, provide services and operate programs in an effort to enable elderly and economically
disadvantaged citizens achieve self-sufficiency.
They serve the following counties (for purposes of the Needs Assessment, Overview is not including Greene and Morgan):
• Baldwin
• Greene
• Hancock
• Jasper
• Johnson
• Morgan
• Putnam
• Washington
• Wilkinson

Every three years, Overview Inc. is required to assess the needs of the community and the families they serve. The information collected will
assist them in planning, developing and offering the appropriate services to the needs of the communities and families. In meeting this
requirement, Overview solicited the services of Roberts Research and Marketing who engaged V & L Research in conducting a Focus Group
among Community Leaders.
Delphyne Taylor, moderated one (1) group of Community Leaders on Tuesday, March 5, 2019 at 6:30pm. There were a total of fourteen (14)
leaders who participated. Focus group participants were asked to provide their perspective regarding problems facing youth, ages 5 to 17, as
well as problems facing adults in the community. They were also allowed to comment on any additional challenges they saw in the
community.
Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment
Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Top community needs – unaided responses
Q: What do you think are the top needs of low-income persons in your community?

 Affordable, low-income housing

 Not enough homeless shelters
 Current infrastructure is run down
 Health insurance
 Affordable transportation
 Difficult for individuals who don’t have access to personal vehicles to get to medical appointments
 Nutrition
 Lack of healthy options close by

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
 Community challenges faced by youth driven by inadequate access to after
school programs and lack of understanding, healthy adult role models
“The reason I didn’t [agree] is because there are
Percentage of participants agreeing that places that they can go, we have an after-school
Lack of factors contribute to community challenges program, at the Boys and Girls Club, but a lot of
adult role people don't sign-up though because they don't have
models a way to get there. Normally, the bus will transport
Insufficient after school kids from the primary school, elementary school, but
93%
programs when they get past the fifth grade, the buses won't
Violence Stress transport them anymore, I don't know why…it's been
addressed many times, so there are some activities
Adults not in touch with needs available. I have to say that … [it] is not necessarily the
93%
of youth cost, because the cost is very low.”

Unstable family
Alcohol and Depression 86%
home / lack of
drug abuse
2-parent home
“I see even grandmamas are raising them, and it's
almost like they didn't get their youth, so they're old
Lack of adult role models 71% enough now to do what they wanna do, so they're
Lack of throwing the kid of on grandma, and grandma is
opportunities having to struggle to figure out how to get all this
Depression
to develop taken care of financially, which is stress, you know.
skills Stress 57% Daughters or sons out there drinking and trying to
deal with their mental problems with that, and yeah,
High school drop I mean grandmamas are toting a lot around here.”
out rates were cited
by the group
Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment
Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
 Community challenges faced by adults driven by lack of access to quality
resources such as food, healthcare, recreation, social supportive services
“I think it's not for the lack of jobs, it's not that
as much as the amount of money that job pays
… we don't have jobs that pay livable wages, so
people can be able to live. So just like you said
when that person works, let's use warehousing,
those jobs pay about seven or eight dollars and
hour, don't have any health benefits, those jobs
have a big turnover … there's so many of them
out there, and people don't stay. I work at one
job for four to six years, because it pays good
wages, and I stayed that and I was able to
provide and send my two kids to college, plus
being able to go on vacation. There's a lot of
jobs, but it's not a job that pays livable wages,
now. People just move on from one job to the
next.”
Difficulty paying
bills, including
“I think we have a lot of resources and a lot of
assets in Baldwin County, people don't know
how to get there, or they're unable to get
there. There are food banks all over this
community and there's starving people in this
community, it makes no sense.”
“There's a lot of food banks in this county, but
if you can't get over to get to the food, or the
food's not being delivered, then the access
points are a problem here.”
Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment
Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Unemployment “I look at some of the people that come through
or [here] and they need help … they're working at
Underemploym- McDonald's and even the ones that are really
ent / unfair working at McDonald's, they've got to find
babysitting, which is a problem, child care is a
wages
Lack of affordable problem because it's expensive ... they need
Depression and another job, because McDonald's is not going to
and flexible do it … So then what they do is they're like, 'It's
childcare options discouragement
easier for me to be on public assistance, because
I've got to work two jobs to make what I could
just make on public assistance.'.”
“I think it's like we've said, people just don't
know. We haven't done a good job of marketing
what we have.”
Poor role models
and unhealthy
housing family structure “[the community needs] after hours child care …
we also need weekend child care.”
“We talk about the family structure. When you
have babies raising babies, what are we going to
Lack of education and get? First of all the 12 year old, knew nothing,
Insufficient
skills (high school drop how's she going to take care of a family, and
transportation then her daughter gets pregnant, and we see
out rates)
that a lot in school systems. So there's got to be
something to help with the family structure…”
 Community challenges faced by single parents driven by lack of community
support and affordable/flexible childcare options
“There's really a bias, too towards single dads,
you know I watched my brother go through it,
because he was a single dad with three children,
and his wife decided that she was going to leave
... When he first went somewhere, and the
reason he did move back home, is he went to a
government organization and not only did the
woman say to him, 'What are you doing here?'
She also said, 'What did you do to her?' So it was
always preconceived that my brother did
something, so that's why he was there. So we
need to change that mindset, somehow.”
“Just that mentor, or that, I don't know what
else to call them exactly, but just somebody
who's wiser, who's been through things,
sometimes is a good thing to have.”
“I think that whole support network around, I
mean cause bad things happen all the time and
you're tired, there's so many things that go on,
even in a stable family, some days you're just
ready to throw up your hands, but if you're by
yourself and someone is running a fever at
2:00am, what am I supposed to do? I can't get
them anyplace. There's a lot of support that
single moms need.”
Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment
Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
“[affordable child care] would have to be based
on their income, see we don't do that, we don't
Affordable do a good job of that.”
childcare
“After hours child care … the late shift at
Subway, they leave their kids home with older
siblings, and that's where they get into a lot of
Flexible childcare trouble. There's no adult supervision there.”
Lack of support for
(evenings and
single dads “I think in Hancock, we have a higher level of
weekends)
education for single moms, not having adequate
facility or educational based ... educational
facilities there. We do have OFTC, that used to
be in our community, but they're not there
anymore, so having access to be able to go and
get higher education, we do pretty good from
middle school to high school, after high school, if
that person doesn't have the initiative to get up
and go.”
Lack of support for
Lack of access to
single
higher education “I find this to be very interesting as a single
grandparents father, that we're focusing on a single mother,
because, I'll tell you why, I know there's
probably more single mothers, but also as a
manager at the largest employer in the area, the
Lack of community one thing that I'm running into as a manager, is
support and guidance that, we have more single fathers, or fathers
who are taking care of their children, so now the
fathers are asking these questions … The father
is the person that is now taking that lead …”
Community challenges faced by seniors is driven by inadequate
transportation and difficulty performing daily tasks

Transportation

Medication
Yard work
monitoring

Exercise and social

Household tasks
interaction
(such as cleaning)
opportunities

Help with personal

care

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Proposed solutions to youth challenges include education, mentorship
opportunities, and stability
 Stable, loving, healthy family structure Percentage of participants agreeing with proposed solutions
 Access to healthy food to community challenges

 Access to clothing and shelter Services to encourage at-risk youth to

93%
make positive choices
 Mentorship opportunities for youth (13-17 YO) Help preventing teen pregnancies and
93%
birth control education
 Better marketing and awareness of available programs
Opportunity to be matched with an adult
 Development of soft skills 79%
mentor
Help with tech school or college financial
“We talked about job opportunities and training our kids how to work, in
79%
aid applications
Wilkerson, they don't have no place that they can work … they're not taught soft-
skills, so a lot of times, some of them do get jobs but they just don't have the soft Mentorship opportunities with positive
71%
skills to maintain them.” adult role models

Schoolwork and tutoring 71%

“Or it could just be how to take care of yourself. One of the things that happens at
the Garden of [inaudible 00:51:37] Lee Center is giving kids an opportunity to
learn how to grow food. So you might not do it for a living … but isn't it important Access to mental health services 50%
to learn how to grow something and preserve it somehow so you can use it to
supplement your income. There's a lot of internships like that, that are needed,
just to help kids develop that ability to take care of themselves, learn those soft Preschool for ages 3-5 43%
skills and get a mentor all at the same time. Just know how to do something,
change a tire, just basic stuff that all of us need to learn, some of us are more
successful than others, but you know what I mean, just having the opportunity to Preschool for ages 0-3 21%
learn that life, from somebody else.”

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Proposed solutions to parent challenges include expanded, affordable
childcare options and recreation across age groups
 Help finding quality childcare
 Help finding the right childcare: “Programs, we have problems forming [recreation] teams, we're so small, we
bring them a lot of times to Baldwin County, we have transportation, so they
 Infant
can compete with those kids, but we have very little recreation.”
 Special needs
 Disabled

 Help paying for childcare

 Evening and weekend childcare coverage
 Childcare for sick children
 Emergency or respite care
 Coverage during school vacations and holidays
 Supervised activities for school-aged children (K-6)
 Recreational activities:
 Already have Boys & Girls clubs, rec departments, but transportation
issues and prohibitive cost cited as barriers to participation
 Mentorship opportunities for youth (13-17 YO)
 Better marketing and awareness of available programs
 Development of soft skills
“They have got to have some sort of adult guidance, or mentor groups at
that age [13-17 YO]. As we were just discussing, when your parent tells you,
and when your peer or your mentor tells you the same thing, you listen when
it's the mentor, but you don't listen when it's the parent...”
“I don't think Baldwin County, or the surrounding, has enough mentors, they
have a few people trying, we've got some stuff, but again it's the knowledge
of it. We have a Mister Mister Program, I think is what it's called, I mean we
have these little things starting, all these little embers everywhere, but
nobody knows about all of it.”
“[recreation programs are] not free anymore.”

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Proposed solutions to adult challenges are focused on livable wages, affordable
transportation, and education (including financial literacy) – Slide 1 of 2
1. Employment 5. Affordable transportation
• Livable wages • Help buying or maintaining a car
• Help with employment applications • Transportation to look for a job (or help getting to work)
• Help finding a job (including employer benefits) • Assistance with gas and auto insurance
• Skills gap training (such as how to use a computer) • Help getting to and from medical appointments
2. Continuing education and job training 6. Better marketing and awareness of available programs
• Help with financial aid 7. Voter registration
• Retraining for internal promotion opportunities 8. Healthy living
• Opportunities for trade school, such as mechanics, plumbers, • Access to affordable healthcare services
electricians, barbers • Assistance applying for health insurance
• Targeted skills development, such as sales or marketing • Help paying for prescription drugs
• Parenting information • Resources for mental health services, including drug and
• Development of soft skills and basic life skills alcohol abuse
• Writing and math • Relief for those caring for elderly or disabled persons
• Understanding changing technology landscape • Access to quality foods
3. Financial training and personal finance services • Free or reduced lunches for children outside of the regular
• Help repairing credit score and reducing debt school year
• Budgeting, learning how to save money, and investing
• Companies participating in balanced billing
• Basic personal finance such as checking and savings accounts
• Help filling out tax forms
• Understanding and applying for social services programs
(social security, disability)
• Starting a business
• Getting insurance
4. Legal services
• Establishing or collecting child support
• Guidelines for landlords to protect low-income families
• Help with rental damage or security deports

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Proposed solutions to adult challenges are focused on livable wages, affordable
transportation, and education (including financial literacy) – Slide 2 of 2
Percentage of participants agreeing with proposed solutions to community challenges (NOTE: showing top 25)
Livable wage that covers family's basic needs 100%
Hands-on training about car repair and maintenance 100%
Transportation to look for a job 93%
Help finding a job with employer benefits 86%
Affordable and reliable access to the internet 86%
Financial planning and setting financial goals 86%
Resources for alcohol and drug abuse treatment 86%
Transportation to drive to work 86%
Subsidized rental housing 79%
Loans or grants to repair homes 79%
Help understanding tenant rights 79%
Help finding affordable health insurance 79%
Assistance applying for health insurance 79%
Help paying for prescription drugs 79%
Information and tips on the best place to shop for affordable and healthy meals 79%
School lunch outside of regular school year 79%
Apprenticeship 71%
Development of basic life skills 71%
Home modifications for disabled 71%
Help reducing debt 71%
Relief for those caring for elderly or disabled 71%
Transportation to or from medical appointments 71%
Access to local emergency food pantries 71%
Proper voter registration 64%
Help to make homes more energy efficient 64%
Information on parenting issues 64%

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
Proposed solutions to adult challenges – verbatim responses
“They need to be able to get to a job and unfortunately
transit doesn't run, it's not reliable, so you could end up
getting fired, because you can't get to work on time.”
Topic: affordable transportation
“You can pay for a cab, but that’s expensive by the time you
go back and forth. You've got daycare and you've gotta pay
a cab, then you've gotta pay your bills. What're you going to
work for?”
Topic: livable wages, affordable transportation
“There's resources but I don't think people know about
them. Again.” [participant response when asked about
information on how to start a business or a loan for a small
business].
Topic: effective marketing to those in need
“We need education on the fact that the emergency rooms
are not doctors' offices...”
Topic: affordable healthcare
“Especially in Georgia. They have a program that they help
different people … It's an hour each class, and it's about
eight classes. And they teach you how to cook meals for like
four people for like $2 and 50 cents.”
Topic: healthy, affordable nutrition
“They [referring to seniors] need to get their medicine. They
need to get their food. They need to pay their bills. I mean
they don't know how to get online.”
Topic: challenges faced by seniors
Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment
Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC
“And then I was talking to some car dealerships cause
there's a lot in [Baldwin 00:08:32] County. And they were
saying one of the things that they need, is they need people
that are trained in customer service ... So they said,
“[participant name], yeah we wanna hire people. But if they
don't want to learn and close the sale ... I need people that
can sell.””
Topic: employment and training
““… I don't know why it keeps going up. I've called my
landlord, I don't know what's going on." And I'm like you got
to talk to power, have you called in with whatever? Or, "My
water bill, I got a leak somewhere, and he won't fix it." It
absolutely has to do with the landlords ...”
Topic: affordable housing
“Or when he gets to his job [participant referring to member
of the community], using the computer to clock in and out,
to use the computer to just to do the basic parts of his job.”
Topic: soft skills and continuing education
“And you used to, I mean this is 20 something years ago at a
high school, Baldwin high school had, I don't know what
they have now, but Baldwin high school had a transportation
to your college or course. They had a carpentry course, they
had a construction ... mechanics, construction, cosmetology.
Welding was one of them. There were skill sets that they
offered and in the high school you could take these skill sets
for two years. [crosstalk 00:07:55]”
Topic: continuing education
“Well I think people, whoever, need to clamp down on some
of these slum lords. It is ridiculous, 'cause you go to help
people, and you go to their house, and the landlord has
removed the stove, and the people are cooking on a hot
plate, and it's just crazy. Or there's no heating unit in the
entire home, so they're using plug in heaters, so they're
space heaters, so the electric bill is ridiculous. And you
know, one guy owns like 12 houses.”
Topic: affordable housing
“Financial, I mean first we need to start with some of the
basics, a savings and a checking account. Then you don't
have to go to the check cashing place to cash a check, which
they charge you for, or buy a money order to pay your bill.
'Cause they don't use the computers, so they're not paying
online. It's just a whole vicious circle.”
Topic: financial stability
“…People got to learn to manage what they got coming in.
And that's the main problem..”
Topic: financial education
“Before we even get that far [crosstalk 00:12:22; participant
referring to buying a home]... We need credit repair.
Legitimate credit repair. Because people are going to go ... I
heard a lot of people come through the office, “[participant
name] I wanna buy a house." Pull your credit ... Oh, credit
score is 484. Okay well, y'all gotta buy a house when the
credit score's better. So we need legitimate credit repair,
then get them on a budget, so that they can go buy a
house.”
Topic: financial stability
Summary of most important community needs
Q: We’ve talked about a variety of needs. If I went around the room and allowed each of you to give me your top three needs
what would they be?

 Assisting with childcare needs for parents

 Building healthy, stable families
 Helping adults earn a livable wage
 Ensuring high graduation rates
 Delivering comprehensive education
 Assisting with home maintenance
 Ensuring affordable transportation
 Helping seniors
 Ensuring access to healthy food options
 Ensuring affordable healthcare
 Developing and promoting youth activities

Source: Overview Inc. - Community Needs Assessment

Roberts Research & Marketing, LLC