Print pageRelease date: 11/30/2023
New report: Pandemic prompted nonprofits to pivot programs, expand roles
to meet community needs
to meet community needs
Washington, D.C. – COVID-19 and its aftermath have shifted how NeighborWorks network organizations serve their communities, and NeighborWorks America’s new report highlights how the nearly 250 nonprofits pivoted their programs and services, met residents’ needs and helped keep communities healthy, safe and connected.
The report, “Beyond COVID: Exploring the NeighborWorks Network COVID-19 Response Work as a Foundation to Building Thriving, Resilient Communities,” is based on a series of focus groups with nearly 30 network organizations.
“During a two-year period that saw seismic shifts in people’s access to basic needs along with their sense of well-being, NeighborWorks network organizations expanded into roles as stabilizers, trusted partners and community anchors,” said Romi Hall, NeighborWorks America’s Director of Healthy Homes and Communities. “The pandemic’s effects on low-income communities and communities of color also sparked the need to find the root causes of inequities and renew a commitment to resident-led, place-based and comprehensive approaches that enable meaningful change to occur.”
In mapping their responses during that two-year period, patterns in the network organizations’ work emerged that went beyond their often-sought-after community roles as housing developers, lead agencies or service providers. According to the report, network organizations expanded into the three following roles:
- Stabilizers: The network provided residents with support to meet basic needs, provided technology and other digital training supports, and built partnerships to bring COVID-19 resources, testing, vaccination and information to residents.
- Trusted partners: Network organizations successfully communicated pertinent COVID-19 information in accessible ways and in multiple languages. They also worked with their funders to redirect funding in ways that the organization needed to best support operations and meet residents' needs. Many funders agreed to this redirection as they trusted network organizations, recognized their key role in meeting the community's needs, and also wanted to ensure their continuity throughout COVID.
- Community anchors: In being stabilizers and trusted partners, network organizations expanded into being community anchors – institutions focused on community-based strategies, bringing people together across divides, engaging the public and sparking innovation.
In the years ahead, these roles will be critical to ensuring places across the country become communities of opportunity. NeighborWorks’ report offers recommendations to build on the care infrastructure and support by continuing to center meaningful resident engagement, increasing system-aware and equity-centered support, building strong partnerships, and sustaining funding to increase impact.
Throughout the initial two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NeighborWorks network provided:
- 1.3 million services to residents in their buildings and wider community.
- Nearly 500,000 services related to providing food and basic necessities.
- Support to nearly 70,000 households with cash resource for rental assistance.
- Hired 1,000+ new staff positions.
- Received $134.2 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans from the federal government.
- Spent more than $60 million in COVID-19 related costs from technology for telework, virtual service delivery and overtime pay for staff.
Also notably, leading the way for other funders, NeighborWorks immediately provided unrestricted funding to the network so they could spend the funding where they knew it was needed. This funding enabled the network to use technology in new ways, reduce unexpected costs of continuous cleaning procedures and acquire personal protective equipment. NeighborWorks America’s Healthy Homes and Communities Program will continue highlighting how to keep communities healthy and safe at a symposium on health equity at the NeighborWorks Training Institute in San Francisco Feb. 26 - March 1. Topics will include centering the voices of residents to create thriving places and uplifting network examples to show why resident voice matters. Blog posts and a toolkit focused on advancing health equity through housing and community development will maintain momentum on this topic. Additionally, the program will produce new sections for its Health Partner Investment toolkit. Also in 2024, NeighborWorks America will produce reports that emphasize the impact of applying comprehensive approaches to affordable housing and community development.
About NeighborWorks America
For 45 years, Neighborhood Reinvestment Corp., a national, nonpartisan nonprofit known as NeighborWorks America, has strived to make every community a place of opportunity. Our network of excellence includes nearly 250 nonprofits in every state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. NeighborWorks offers grant funding, peer exchange, technical assistance, evaluation tools, and access to training as the nation's leading trainer of housing and community development professionals. NeighborWorks network organizations provide residents in their communities with affordable homes, owned and rented; financial counseling and coaching; community building through resident engagement; and collaboration in the areas of health, employment and education.
For 45 years, Neighborhood Reinvestment Corp., a national, nonpartisan nonprofit known as NeighborWorks America, has strived to make every community a place of opportunity. Our network of excellence includes nearly 250 nonprofits in every state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. NeighborWorks offers grant funding, peer exchange, technical assistance, evaluation tools, and access to training as the nation's leading trainer of housing and community development professionals. NeighborWorks network organizations provide residents in their communities with affordable homes, owned and rented; financial counseling and coaching; community building through resident engagement; and collaboration in the areas of health, employment and education.
