shen-hao chang portfolio

Portfolio:Citizen Planning School

Name: Shen-Hao Chang|| Course Number: URP574|| Spring 2015

About the Citizen Planning School

The Citizen Planning School program ia part of the One Region Forward Initiative (1RF). The program complements the long-term regional plan by providing a learning platform for citizens of Erie and Niagara counties to increase sustainability of their communities.

Participants attend learning sessions to gain insight from local experts from the private, public and non-profit sectors on a range of issues in planning and sustainable development.

A key component of the program is selecting a class of Champions for Change, who are dedicated citizens interested in transforming their ideas for small scale community projects into action. They receive technical assistance from professionals and graduate students enrolled in the UB School of Architecture and Planning to transform their creative ideas into actions.

Goals of the Citizen Planning School:

1. Educate the public on 1RF2. Understand community engagement3. Build resident capacity for community based change4. Engage mutual learning between students and

participants

Contents:

Page 3 Program SupportPage 4 Technical AssistancePage 6 EventsPage 9 MaterialsPage 10 EvaluationPage 11 Reflection

Figure 1: People Source: www.pic.com

Program support

Contents:

Program SupportPage 4 Technical AssistancePage 6 EventsPage 9 MaterialsPage 10 EvaluationPage 11 Reflection

My dual role of student and an intern for the Citizen Planning

School has enabled me to familiarize with new sets of skills

and implement them through a variety of roles. This has

helped me to train to become a well-rounded planner. The

following list outlines my responsibilities in the program:

Technical Assistance

● 1-on-1 technical support with champions for change

to guide them through the four step model of small

scale project planning.

Event Staffing

● Oversaw on-site catering and hospitality

● Provided 1-on-1 assistance to participants during

workshop sessions

● assisted attendees in GIS workshop: Mapping metrics

is a highly beneficial tool that allows citizens to

investigate, analyze specific geographic areas of

interest by sector

Toolkit Development

● Researched and integrated data resources

● Content-editing

Project Management

● Learned how to create and integrate a logic model

into small-scale project planning.

● Delegated personnel to specific responsibilities with

the use of a Gantt chart


My role as a technical assistance provider is to guide and

motivate the citizen champion to move their project forward

through the four steps of small scale project development:

● Idea refinement: developing project statement● Scope definition: organize use of time, money,

resources, other potential assets● Planning research: gather data from precedent

studies, ● Small plan development: organize findings and

analysis in a final deliverable plan

I personally assisted champion Ron Fraser in developing a

preliminary strategy for a market spatial study of Erie

County’s farmer’s markets in the South Town area. The goal

of this project is to analyze the market areas of six farmer’s

markets by surveying customers and vendors.

● Refined the project’s goals and objectives by

removing any ambiguous or unrelated goals

● Developed a framework for creating a the survey

● Constructed a table outlining potential assets to

leverage

● Recommended precedent cases and previous

studies to build credibility of the project.

● Constructed a logic model outlining flow of resources,

actions and outcomes.

Contents:

Page 3 Program Support Technical AssistancePage 6 EventsPage 9 MaterialsPage 10 EvaluationPage 11 Reflection

Figure 1: Asset Mapping for Farmer’s Markey Survey


Contents:


My second project was assisting Valerie Edwards in

developing an outreach strategy for her afterschool

tutoring program “My Little Literacy Leaders”. The

project seeks to expand to ensure the youths would

receive the academic, emotional, social support beyond

the capacities of traditional after-school programs.

Recommendations:

● Develop a logic model outlining the flow of

resources, actions and outcomes for the project

● Conduct an organizational assessment analyzing

the current capacity of the program

● Develop a recruitment strategy

● Created a framework for publicizing the program

through public presentations, engagement with

local community groups and using social media

Figure 1: My Little Literacy Leaders Program Logic Model

Figure 2: My Little Literacy Leaders After School ProgramSource: Valerie Edwards

Events || Learning Sessions

Two learning Sessions were held to educate citizens the goals of the One Region Forward Initiative . Participants attend issue-based lectures, and gain insight from local experts from the private, public and non-profit sectors on a range of issues in planning and sustainable development. They also have access to online toolkits that guide them through multiple resources when planning for projects.

Key Statistics● ~45 attendees per learning session ● 9 guest speakers & 8 guest panelists● 2 workshops● 11 champions for change

Contents:

Page 3 Program SupportPage 4 Technical Assistance EventsPage 9 MaterialsPage 10 EvaluationPage 11 Reflection


Events || Workshops

Contents:



Four workshop sessions were held to facilitate 1 on 1 discussions with the champions. These sessions provided an opportunity to review current progress, revise project content, discuss potential changes, and assign responsibilities. These sessions were also instrumental in building rapport with the champions, and were a platform for mutual learning.

Events || Idea Summit

Contents:


The champions’ projects were shared to the public in a symposium called the Idea Summit. The event is a celebration culminating three months of collaboration between students and the champions. The event was alsoattended by professionals from public, private and non-private sectors to create a platform for networking and future collaborations.

Key Statistics: ● 67 attendees● 11 projects● Projects in idea phase: 2● Projects in planning phase: 7● Projects in action phase: 2

Materials || Toolkits

Contents:

Page 3 Program SupportPage 4 Technical AssistancePage 6 Events MaterialsPage 10 EvaluationPage 11 Reflection

We have developed toolkits for attendees of the Citizen

Planning School to supplement topics discussed during

the learning sessions. The toolkits provide a list of

resources available for Citizen Planners who may be

interested in initiating change to their community. In

total we have produced two 16 page toolkits. The

contents include short descriptions of selected regional

planning initiatives, curated list of user-friendly web-

based analytical tools and a guide to professional words

in concepts in planning.

The goal of these toolkits is to clearly communicate its

contents to the reader in a concise, and effective

manner. My role during the preparation of the toolkits

was performing research and integrating appropriate

data resources. The most relevant and useful resources

were included in the toolkits. In addition, careful

attention was paid to enhancing the user-friendly

experience by simplifying professional wording into a

clear format understandable for all types of readers.·

Evaluation || One Region Forward

To evaluate the merits and weaknesses of the One Region

Forward (1RF) long-range plan, I compared the document to

a precedent case from Des Moines, Iowa. Overall, I have

gained considerable insight in understanding the complexity

of developing a long-range regional plan. Below is a summary

of my analysis:

● There is no universal template for developing long-

range regional plans. Each one is developed under

their own unique circumstances.

● Both plans feature a diversified outreach strategy

involving a mix of public meetings and social media.

● Both plans feature a bottom-up grassroots approach

in engaging the general public.

● A plan is likely to achieve its goals when it clearly

communicates its implementation strategy. 1RF is

lacking in this aspect, and could learn from Des

Moines by elaborating on funding strategies and

designated agencies.

● 1RF has adopted a scenario planning approach that

contrasts multiple development trajectories with the

business-as-usual scenario. This is a great strategy to

build consensus and foster camaraderie among

citizens, agencies and localities.

● Plan content needs to be internally consistent. This

was a major weakness in the Des Moines study.

Topics involving intangible factors, such as arts and

culture, historic preservation, and placemaking were

ambiguously defined with no clear objective.

Contents:

Page 3 Program SupportPage 4 Technical AssistancePage 6 EventsPage 9 Materials EvaluationPage 11 Reflection

Reflection ||

Overall the Citizen Planning School achieves its goals in

educating citizens the objectives and goals of 1RF. The school

also successfully supports citizen champions the resources

and assistance for small scale project planning.

From my experience as a student and an intern, I learned the

value of community engagement, which is to pass on

knowledge or skill to the general public, and ensuring they

understand and appreciate the value of the information

given. By working collaboratively, I learned the importance of

mutual learning

I also gained insight on communicating with clarity. By

working through multiple media, range from orally to toolkit

preparation, I have lear value of appropriate use of words to

precisely inform the reader. Through toolkits, 1 on 1

guidance, panel discussions

At the same time, my experience as student could be further

increased if we had more opportunities to interact with the

champions. I suggest engaging with them earlier would result

in better matching of skills and expertise. Theg first learning

session workshop could be reoriented to allow champions to

present their project proposals and pinpoint exactly what

type of expertise the need. This approach may result in

more productivity and potentially more projects moving

from planning to action phase.

Finally it is crucial for graduate and returning champions to

share their past experiences as new champions are enrolled

in the program. It not only provides a networking

opportunity, but also enhances the social organization of the

community, which is exactly what is needed to induce

change in the region.

Contents:

Page 3 Program SupportPage 4 Technical AssistancePage 6 EventsPage 9 MaterialsPage 10 Evaluation Reflection

Citizen Planning School

References/Appendix

Des Moines Area Metropolitan Planning Organization. The Tomorrow Plan. 2013. http://www.thetomorrowplan.com/

One Region Forward. “One Region Forward’s Regional Plan for Sustainable Development”. 2014. http://www.oneregionforward.org/the-plan/

One Region Forward. “Citizen Planning School”. n.d. http://www.oneregionforward.org/citizen-planning-school/

shen-hao chang portfolio

Documents

technical assistance

program support page

materials page

events page

evaluation page

smallscale project planning

technical support

technical assistance