Fostering Resident Voice and Influence: The Making Connections Experience with Resident Engagement and Leadership

Resident engagement is often noted as a key element in neighborhood transformation and community change efforts, yet very little literature exists that explains and captures how resident engagement actually happens and what it takes to achieve lasting resident engagement capacity and success. As one step toward expanding the information available, this report presents insights gained by the Annie E. Casey Foundation after more than a decade of working with residents to achieve better results during the Making Connections initiative, Casey's signature community change effort of the 2000s. The report describes the various activities in which residents were engaged during Making Connections, the sequence and timing of those activities and some of the impact and community improvements that were achieved as a result. Through a focus on the Making Connections experience, the report highlights effective resident engagement strategies and assesses the factors that can inhibit or enhance their effectiveness