The final presentation of a proposed three-year Little Rock Youth Master Plan from a citizen committee and consulting group has been pushed back from this fall to June.
The move came after members of the Youth Master Plan Advisory Committee expressed discontent with the pace of the process thus far. Thursday marked the committee's third meeting since April, and they are still discussing what their main goals will be.
Originally, there was just one more committee meeting scheduled, in August, before a final plan would be presented in November for consideration by the Little Rock Board of Directors.
But now, the November presentation to the board will only cover first-year goals, leaving the committee and Ohio-based consultants with Advocacy and Communication Solutions LLC until June to finalize the full three-year plan. The city agreed to pay the firm up to $125,000 to help develop the master plan.
Another four committee meetings will be added to the schedule, as well as smaller work-group meetings in between and a community meeting in November. Dates have yet to be set.
Joseph Jones, founding executive director of the Social Justice Initiative at Philander Smith College -- a partner with the consulting firm in the development of the Youth Master Plan -- updated the advisory committee Thursday with results of the focus groups he's been having with youths in Little Rock.
He's interviewed children and young adults ages 6 through 24, with most of the them in the 12-14 age group. About 57 percent of the 418 participants were male and 84 percent were black.
The participants identified drugs as the No. 1 issue they face, followed by gangs, killings and shootings, and other violence. Those interviewed put sports, especially basketball, at the top of their list of activities of interest. Participants suggested sports and youth development programs be created, as well as additional places for children to hang out.
When discussing what the committee members' top goals were Thursday, member Ron Copeland said the No. 1 focus has to be on the children. Kids must be healthy, fed, housed and clothed with their basic needs addressed before youth development and a focus on the family is tackled, Copeland said.
"We don't let kids in our city exist in those [poor] conditions if we value them," he said.
Committee member Beth Echols emphasized the need for continued youth participation.
"It's difficult to determine what programs are best going to serve their needs without their ongoing participation in those decisions. Plus, that meets the goals of empowerment and prevention if we give them a leadership role and they take interest in their community," Echols said.
Little Rock's Community Programs Department -- led by Director Dana Dossett -- has taken an active role in the development of the Youth Master Plan.
Dossett said Thursday that a change she'd like to see is to have a requirement that the organizations receiving funding from the department to run a youth program must match a certain percentage of the funding.
"We were never meant to be their sole source of income," she said.
The department has a $5.5 million annual budget, which Dossett pointed out isn't a lot in terms of what the group is trying to accomplish. Some of it is budgeted for specific purposes, such as a partnership with the Parks and Recreation Department, she said.
Committee member Laveta Wills-Hale agreed with the matching funds requirement, but added a caveat.
"I think we have to be careful and consider where these programs are, what their organizational capacities are and what their spheres of influence are," Wills-Hale said. "Not that we don't require matching funds for leverage and outside support, but our first priority should be to make sure there's better access to these programs where the needs are the greatest. To the extent we want to see leverage, I'd hate to see that as a barrier."
Metro on 07/24/2015