Our Mission

The Community Outreach Partnership Center's mission is to utilize university knowledge and resources to enhance the human and social capital of the Consolidated Urban Revitalization Area (CURA).

COPC Profile

Technical support for the Waterloo Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation (WNEDC) an organization formed to promote economic development in neighborhoods within the City's Consolidated Urban Revitalization Area. This support will be provided by UNI's Institute for Decison Making.

Implementation of the MyEntrenet Program in the CURA. This is a program of networking, educational and technical support designed to encourage new entrepreneurs to create businesses. It has been successfully offered in a number of Iowa communities by UNI's Regional Business Center, and the grant will enable them to offer it in Waterloo, as a complement to the economic development efforts of the WNEDC.

Neighborhood Youth Safety and Development Committees. This program engages neighborhood residents and the Waterloo Police Department in a cooperative effort to reduce crime and enhance neighborhood safety in six targeted neighborhoods within the CURA. It will provide additional funding for the Neighborhood Partners Program, an outreach effort already funded by the Community Partnership for Protecting Children, utilizing state "decat" funds. The Partners will help organize Neighborhood Youth Safety Committees to encourage police/community cooperation. This program will also support the goals of the recent Weed and Seed Initiative, an application to the U.S. Department of Justice developed by a broad based group of agency and community representatives. The program will be coordinated by COPC staff, and Neighborhood Partners will receive training by faculty from the UNI Family Studies program.

Neighborhood based youth recreation. An evening recreation program for youth will be offered at three sites in the targeted neighborhoods during the summer of 2006 and the summer of 2007. Waterloo's Department of Leisure Services will provide supervision for student volunteers from the American Humanics Program at UNI. The Mayor's Youth Initiative will also provide funds in support of this program.

Contact Information

Telephone

319-287-8164

FAX

319-273-7126

Postal address

500 E. 4th Street, Suite 415, Waterloo, IA 50703

Electronic mail

cheryl.faries@uni.edu