Stakeholders partner to create community engagement model for public safety

Teamwork Englewood partnered with the City of Chicago and the McCormick Foundation to host activations at Moran Park as part of its community safety engagement model. PHOTO PROVIDED BY COMMUNITY SAFETY COORDINATION CENTER.
Teamwork Englewood partnered with the City of Chicago and the McCormick Foundation to host activations at Moran Park as part of its community safety engagement model. PHOTO PROVIDED BY COMMUNITY SAFETY COORDINATION CENTER.

Stakeholders partner to create community engagement model for public safety

By Tia Carol Jones

Every other Friday, Teamwork Englewood hosts activations at Moran Park, located at 5727 S. Racine. At those activations, Teamwork Englewood provides food, services, entertainment and giveaways.  It is part of Teamwork Englewood’s community safety engagement model that aims to deter gun violence. Teamwork Englewood, the City of Chicago and McCormick Foundation have partnered for a community safety engagement model that identifies a community’s needs and directs resources to areas that experience high levels of violence.

The Community Safety Coordination Center was established in 2021, as a way to find a comprehensive strategy to address the root causes of violence in communities and develop long-term strategies for rebuilding those communities, as well as create a thriving economy and address family needs. Teamwork Englewood had already been convening around public safety. The City of Chicago was looking for a partner to be connected with in regard to community public safety goals and how to connect city resources that prevent violence.

Teamwork Englewood has been doing work around public safety since its inception in 2003 and in connection with the Englewood Quality of Life Plan, which was developed in 2005. It was something Cecille De Mello, Executive Director at Teamwork Englewood, thought was a good idea. De Mello is always advocating for resources that help prevent violence in communities.

The philanthropy community, in this case the McCormick Foundation, is financially assisting with support for staffing of Community Engagement Managers, who work directly with the city at the Community Safety Coordination Center. The McCormick Foundation was aware of the work Teamwork Englewood has been doing around public safety strategies and convening people around different issues in greater Englewood. “What was really attractive to us is that it was a community engagement effort that was rooted in a community that McCormick has long time invested in and committed to reducing violence in the community,” said Mirlene Dossous, Director of the Englewood Portfolio at the McCormick Foundation.

The McCormick Foundation has been providing $100,000 to Teamwork Englewood and Little Village each year to hire a Community Engagement Manager. Tametrius Files is the Public Safety Coordinator for Teamwork Englewood and one of the Community Engagement Managers with the Community Safety Coordination Center. McCormick Foundation recognized the importance of having Community Engagement Managers to support the public safety efforts in those communities. The hope is with that staff member coordinating those efforts, it would increase the ability to provide resources and navigate residents to resources.

The Community Safety Coordination Center has helped Teamwork Englewood concentrate its public safety work in two police beats that have been consistent drivers of crime. Moran Park ended up being an opportunity for Teamwork Englewood to do deep investment because the park is located in the middle of an area where there was crime. Teamwork Englewood helped the park purchase equipment, enhance the summer camp program and support other activations that take place at the park.

“We’re still building our success at Moran. Part of what I’m learning from public safety work is that your hot spots in the community take consistent saturated resources and activations and relationship building,” De Mello said. “It’s really being able to let folks know, we’re not letting go of this park and people seeing the consistency to know something is happening here and either I want to be a part of it, or something is happening here and I need to change the way I interact with this public space.”

Along with other foundation partners, McCormick Foundation thought it was important to support other communities – North Lawndale and West Garfield Park – as part of the initiative. For more information about Teamwork Englewood, visit teamworkenglewood.org. For more information about the Community Safety Coordination Center, visit https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/cscc/home.html.

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