Wk 5 – Signature Assignment: Community Analysis

Assignment Content

You have been assigned by your agency to complete a community assessment in order to identify resources and needs and to plan for a new program to meet the needs of an identified population. Choose either the community you grew up in or the community in which you currently live. Choose one vulnerable population that lives in the community (e.g., LGBTQ+, refugees, older adults, people with mental illness).

Write a 1,225- to 1,400-word community assessment in which you:

1. Describe the community
2. Is the community more of a small town, a larger city, or somewhere in between? 
3. What is the population of your chosen community?  
4. What is the majority social class in the community? Is it diverse? 
5. What different ethnic and cultural groups live within the community? 
6. Use data from the U.S. Census Bureau to support this section. You can search for your specific community by geography, year, etc.
7. Describe the resources in the community for your chosen population. 
8. Research different types of services, such as counseling, educational support, criminal justice organizations, medical services, and social services, that may be available for your chosen population. 
9. Describe the needs in the community for your chosen population.
10. Consider needs like safety, health, housing, etc.
11. Identify any gaps in the services that are available.  
12. Choose one of the identified needs for your population.
13. Identify and provide supporting evidence for this problem that the community is experiencing. (How do we know it is a problem in this community or with this population?) 
14. What are the short- and long-term implications of not addressing the need? 
15. Describe a program your agency could develop to help meet the need you identified.
16. Use scholarly sources to describe the evidence for the program/intervention you are suggesting.
17. How would you involve community stakeholders as you design and develop the program?
18. Describe how you would evaluate the program to determine if it is effectively meeting the community needs you have identified.  
19. Discuss how you would reach out to the community to make it aware of the program, to gain support, and to reach your targeted population. 
20. Consider how you would gather data (e.g., surveys, focus groups, etc.).
21. How would you involve community stakeholders in your evaluation? 

Incorporate theory from Ch. 9 of your textbook in your analysis. 

Cite a minimum of 3 peer-reviewed sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau.  

Format your paper according to APA guidelines.