Good news continues to roll in for the Kendall-Whittier and Eugene Field Neighborhoods. Last December, CAP received a $500,000 Promise Neighborhood planning grant to focus on revitalization in both communities. The inspiration for Promise Neighborhoods is based on the successful model of New York 
City’s Harlem Children’s Zone, a program featured in Waiting for Superman and various other media. These grants fund programs in high poverty neighborhoods which have a proven capacity to build partnerships and possess the necessary systems to track kids through school, so no one falls through the cracks.
This week, the Tulsa World reported that Tulsa Public Schools pledged to provide longitudinal data to track Kendall-Whittier and Eugene Field students as they progress through school. This collaboration also includes a pledge to join with other partners in efforts to reform educational strategies. Taken together, this means CAP is in a better position to compete for a $7 million dollar grant to provide cradle-to-career services to children in the Eugene Field and Kendall-Whittier neighborhoods.
Other good reports include: Rogers College Junior High and High School’s successful first year under the Project Schoolhouse consolidation plan; the first phase of construction, due to start later this year, of a new apartment development adjacent to Kendall-Whittier Elementary; and a plan for physical neighborhood revitalization that includes renovation of Kendall-Whittier Park, so citizens can enjoy better lighting, new entrances, a splash pad and walking trails.
This chain of good news is the result of public and private organizations coming together with communities to surmount the challenges facing Tulsa’s high poverty neighborhoods. The support of the George Kaiser Family Foundation, the Tulsa Area United Way, the City of Tulsa, Tulsa Public Schools and others made it possible for CAP to secure the initial Promise Neighborhood grant and also ensures they can compete for additional funding. It is a partnership based on collaboration and accountability, with a mission to provide children in low-income communities with a pipeline to successful careers, breaking the cycle of inter-generational poverty.
For a longer list of partners for Tulsa’s neighborhood revitalization efforts, check out the U.S. Department of Education’s website here.
For more general information, visit the Promise Neighborhoods Institute website by clicking here.
For more information on the Kendall-Whittier community in particular, check out Studio Tulsa’s recent story by clicking here.
