When it comes to creating meaningful and lasting impact, how you do the work matters just as much as what you create. In our 25 years of working in deep partnership with grantmakers and nonprofits, we’ve learned that real impact happens when communities are engaged as partners, not just participants, throughout the process.
We recently celebrated success in a multi-year initiative in Philadelphia that embodies this principle. The Literacy-Rich Neighborhoods Initiative (LRNI), funded by the William Penn Foundation, aimed to support early literacy development for children in Philadelphia by providing opportunities for adult-child interactions in literacy-rich environments outside the classroom. The initiative featured a diverse ecosystem of experts, including community-based organizations (CBOs), residents, technical assistance providers, evaluators, and designers. Four years of deep collaboration and commitment resulted in a dozen new interactive installations that support literacy and language development by connecting to the culture, people, and history of local neighborhoods in Philadelphia.
In the following video reflections, you will hear from collaborators involved in this work. They share why community engagement is essential to meaningful outcomes along with strategies for navigating the challenges that can emerge along the way, and highlight expansive ways of measuring impact. We hope these insights inspire you to reflect on your own approach and process of partnering with communities to co-create solutions that last.
Community Engagement is the Foundation of Change
Some of the most meaningful breakthroughs in this initiative emerged as our collective understanding of communities’ role evolved. While partners entered the work with a shared belief in the importance of community engagement, that understanding deepened significantly through practice. This work illuminates the fact that true engagement can be complex, non-linear, and at times, uncomfortable. It requires slowing down, rethinking assumptions, and making space for voices that shift the direction of the work.
In this initiative, we had to intentionally slow down and set aside assumptions about how the project would unfold, so that the community could truly shape the process. What emerged was a richer, more expansive understanding of literacy – one that made space for understanding neighborhood history and cultural traditions alongside learning academic building blocks for reading. The result was a dozen interactive installations, each of which uniquely reflects the neighborhood where it exists and the ideas of the community members who helped create it.
The videos below feature two community-based organizations and a community liaison who helped center local voices throughout the work, reflecting on why authentic engagement matters and how it shaped the process and the outcome of the LRNI.
Build Trust and Anticipate Headwinds Along the Way
Long-term change and impact require trust, and building trust takes time. Especially when challenges emerge. The LRNI faced a significant challenge from the start as the COVID-19 pandemic forced community-based organizations to reimagine how to connect with residents while managing their own shifting realities. What kept the initiative strong was a shared respect for the process and relationships with other participants. This meant slowing down, aligning on language, listening, learning, and adapting together.
These videos below include reflections from TA providers and our team as facilitators, and they remind us that when partners hold space for uncertainty, they build stronger relationships and create work that feels authentic and reflective.
Rethink Your Definition of Change and Your Role in Facilitating It
Authentic community engagement should not be a one-and-done milestone, instead an ongoing commitment. Community voices shaped the installations’ purpose and meaning, while partners emphasized listening deeply and sharing decision-making power.
This process strengthened bonds between CBOs and residents, created public spaces that honor neighborhood identity, and sparked new ways for families to connect through literacy. Most importantly, it revealed what’s possible when funders, nonprofits, and communities see themselves as co-creators in the process.
Resources:
- Literacy-Rich Neighborhoods Initiative Report
- Literacy-Rich Neighborhoods Video Summary
- Literacy-Rich Neighborhoods Initiative: Indochinese American Council
- Literacy-Rich Neighborhoods Initiative: Mt. Airy CDC
- Literacy-Rich Neighborhoods Initiative: Puentes de Salud
- Building Bridges Toolkit: A Guide to Centering Community Perspectives