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On April 7, Metropolitan Social Services released its 8th
Annual Community Needs Evaluation at Social and Economic Disparity in Nashville
at the Catholic Pastoral Center. Each of
the approximately 250 participants received a copy of the 2016 Community Needs
Evaluation, which is also available online.
MSS Planning, Coordination and Social Data Analysis staff
gave presentations - Demographic, Social & Socioeconomic Profile of
Davidson County, Aging & Disability, Food & Nutrition, Housing,
Workforce & Economic Opportunity, Toxic Stress and Disparity. The Metro Public Health Department wrote the
section on Health, which was presented by a representative from that
department.
A panel moderated by Mike Hodge (Chief Organizer, NOAH)
discussed issues related to inequity and continuing disparity. The panel included Howard Gentry (Davidson
County Criminal Court Clerk), Dawn Deaner (Davidson County Public Defender) and
Rev. Vernon (Sonnye) Dixon, Senior Pastor, Hobson United Methodist
Church).
Mayor Megan Barry provided remarks about efforts to make
Nashville a great city for all by providing more opportunity. The Mayor’s Office of Economic Opportunity
and Empowerment made a presentation on Building Opportunity & Inclusion.
Metropolitan
Social Services celebrated its 5th Annual Ride to Thrive at
Cleveland Park on April 8. Hundreds of adults and children joined MSS and
other partners for a variety of family-friendly activities. Each year,
MSS brings together Davidson County residents, both young and old, to enjoy a
day of entertainment, information and fun.
Ride 2 Thrive included a showcase of motorcycles and Corvettes was enjoyed by
those who attended. There were representatives from the Nashville Fire
Department, Metro Police (including the mounted patrol), the Veterans
Administration, the U.S. Army and a range of others.
The event
included health-related resources, such as health screenings, healthy cooking
sessions, free haircuts for kids and free food boxes from the One Generation
Away program. There were also fun activities for the younger participants,
including face painting, Kids Korner, the Family Fun Zone and more! All
age groups enjoyed the free food, music, door prizes, etc.
Joining MSS
to hold the event were Metro Parks and Recreation, the National Black Police
Association-Nashville Chapter, Salvation Army Family Resource Center, Tennessee
Bikers Education Association, Piccadilly Restaurants and Save-A-Lot Food
Stores.
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MSS – Accountability-Responsibility-Communication
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On June 1 2016, Metro Social Services (MSS) introduced a new
internal process to enhance ACCOUNTABILITY, RESPONSIBILITY and COMMUNICATION
(ARC for short).
MSS’s ARC cultivates
collective impact and promotes employee engagement. It uses best practices to increase efficiency
and effectiveness of services.
The ARC framework is comprised of employees who serve on the
ARC Committee, which oversees 9 employee workgroups with representation from
all areas and functions of the department.
The collective impact of the workgroups have generated through projects
that involve team building, service delivery improving outcomes, program
development and planning.
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