Understanding and Assessing Communities
Timothy Oldani
Understanding and Assessing Communities
Understanding communities is a vital component for a social worker because there are many different expectations and perceptions that will influence and aid in the work that a social worker does in the community throughout his or her practice. Without the necessary understanding of a community, a social worker will not be able to foster a reasonable level of community-level macro change. To better understand the Veteran Community of Cleveland, Ohio, an adequate framework for assessment will be utilized including: Review of community demographics, analysis of community characteristics, and an assessment of community structure and decision making. These three components serve as the core framework for assessment, and followed by supportive reflections, will aid in better understanding the Veteran Community of Cleveland, Ohio (Netting, Kettner, McMurty, & Thomas, 2012, 2008, 2004).
Community Demographics
Looking into community demographics can help formulate a graphical understanding of the layout of a community. It is important to be able to navigate a community with a reasonable idea of location awareness. Location and identifying data, important representative data, and explanation of the said data will help paint a picture of the Veteran Community in the city of Cleveland.
Location and Identifying Data
The city of Cleveland is very large area, spanning from the Cleveland Airport, with a linear track moving northeast toward Lake Erie and topping out at the northeast section against Lake Erie. Two more protrusions branch out South to the Old Brooklyn area and southeast to the Slavic Village and Union Miles area. The central area is downtown Cleveland, consisting of the Warehouse District, Asiatown, and Ohio City; within these areas the Westside Market, Cleveland Browns Stadium, Quicken Loans Arena, Tower City, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and...