The University of Georgia has expanded its public service and outreach efforts. The Connected Resilient Communities Program, or CRC, allows additional communities to have access to resources available at UGA. Brittany Standifer is the Program Manager; she explains how the process works.
“We start off by creating a steering committee which is comprised of community stake holders, so a lot of time that looks like representatives from the city, the county, the school district, maybe local health care administrator, nonprofit leaders,” according to Standifer. “And they come and serve as the voice of the community, so we work with them to kind of learn their story.”
UGA then uses that information collected to identify projects to tackle.
“The organization is hoping that this allows communities to become more collaborative so that they can overcome adversity and just become more prepared and better positioned for economic success.”
Standifer says many times communities are unaware of the type of assistance offered by the university.
“A lot of times we have resources that communities are not aware that we have,” Standifer said. “It’s a way for them to think, we’ve got this infrastructure challenge in our community, let’s call the College of Engineering. We have health and wellness gaps in our community, how can we work with the College of Public Health, or the College of Pharmacy?”
Unlike the communities served by parent organization, the Archway Partnership, CRC offers help for a specific amount of time. Applications are now open for communities wanting to join. Visit www.archwaypartnership.uga.edu.
