…Well you’re in luck, here’s a crash course in program planning!

Community organizing and outreach usually comes from those who have the best interests of those in need at heart. The great thing about working with communities is that there is no one specific way to design a program or start a project in your community, you are free to base the logistics around the people served. However, you’ll want to organize your ideas for the best use of available resources.

We’ve discussed logic models before and their various uses. Logic models help to organize efforts in the beginning stages of planning a program or advocacy. Using a well-developed logic model gives a visual representation of all the activities expected and how they should be able to bring about change.

To understand more about logic models and receive your own program logic model template & glossary, subscribe to our email list! We’ll send it to you right away 🙂

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Here are some key steps to take to start your own community program:

Pick a program idea

Decide on a focus area. Name and frame your project or program, and continue to develop and build upon articulating the mission behind what called you to focus on the program.

Assess Resources

Resources are not limited to financial donations, so you will need to think “wider” to compensate for everything you may need (volunteers, meeting space, materials needed for group/project activities, etc.)

Make Connections

You need them locally and beyond. There will always be people who share your interests somewhere in the world. It is important to find your supporters locally and expand the net in different ways (social media, networking, partnerships, etc.). Building your audience is useful in the long run, as you’ve built a rapport with people who could share your mission and eventually donate their time and money to support your cause.

Develop Activities

If you’ve come up with a community program, then you’ve most likely discovered a need that is not being addressed in your community.  This is the perfect opportunity to develop smaller activities around the mission and resources available. I.E. If you create a homelessness program that wants to give out water and snacks in on certain days, or a new mentoring program that provides handouts/emails to local parents on available alternative activities for their kids for the summer, it’s important to build advocacy and provide worth for your target group immediately.

Even if you don’t have a lot of money to start out, drawing out similar ideas in the planning process with your logic model can put you on better footing to get donations to carry out these projects!

These steps work if you’re building a program for an existing organization, or if you’re creating a standalone community program from scratch. 

 

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 Here is link to an example of a community program that used a detailed logic model:

In the example, they organized their inputs, projected outputs, goals for outcomes, assumptions, and external factors. They also did a great job showing the relationships between what resources they felt they needed and what those resources should be able to help them reach.

To get help planning your programs and using logic models, contact us now!

 

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