The Vision, The Mission, Core Values
Coalition History
Programmatic Directions and Goals
Organizational Directions and Goals
The Coalition's Organizational Structure
Councils
Gwinnett is a united community of healthy, self-sufficient and drug-free individuals and families which honors diversity and supports all members' success in learning, work, and life.
The Mission
The Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services is a public/private partnership whose mission is to facilitate collaboration that improves the well-being of the community. We accomplish this mission by:
- Identifying needs and resources,
- Setting priorities,
- Planning solutions,
- Focusing on results, and
- Educating and motivating the community to action.
The Core Values
In pursuing its mission, the Coalition values:
- Input from the community,
- A focus on prevention rather than intervention,
- A focus on people as well as agencies,
- Measurable outcomes and impact,
- The power of joint action, sharing information and re-directing resources,
- The vital importance of lifelong learning, including children who are ready to learn and succeed in school, and
- The efficient use of resources.
In 1989, the foremost leaders in Gwinnett County's private and public sectors, including representatives from state and local government and the United Way, came together to address the issue of rapid growth and related implications on service and support mechanisms. Recognizing that information concerning the County's health and human service needs was lacking, they decided to combine public and private dollars to hire a consultant to conduct a community needs assessment.
The report revealed a prevalence of decentralization and inaccessibility to services throughout the county. Three primary recommendations to result from the study were:
- the development of an infrastructure to optimize efficient use of public funds and to stabilize funding for health and human services,
- the development of cluster service centers around the county to improve service accessibility, efficiency, and quality, and
- a prioritized focus on planning for children and families, including older adults.
Thus, was born the Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services (The Coalition) that today consists of a 56 member Board of Directors representing both public and private providers, educational institutions, business leaders, religious organizations, citizen groups, residents and one youth.
Deemed by the County Board of Commissioners as the entity responsible for planning services for children and families in Gwinnett County, the Coalition has implemented three 5-Year Strategic Plans that have addressed the short-term and long-term priorities for service systems throughout the County. The leadership the Coalition has shown to the community over the past ten years has helped to establish a broad system of services. The following is a limited list of those services:
- An automated information and referral system for providers and its centralized Helpline;
- The maintenance of five major councils and multiple committees to support the ongoing planning process made up of over 300 participants;
- A county-wide system of cooperative ministries that pools religious funds and volunteers;
- Five successful grants for the community that resulted in the creation of a non-profit organization to address housing needs;
- A comprehensive youth survey of more than 6,000 students to yield data concerning at-risk and asset behavior;
- The Gwinnett Neighborhood Leadership Institute, a program to train grassroots leaders how to take an active role within their communities;
- The design of the Common Client Information System, a database involving 13 government and non-profit user organizations that serve more than 275,349 consumers each year.
In November of 2001, the Coalition began a community assessment process that would result in data used for the current plan. The Coalition established a Strategic Planning Committee to guide the strategic planning activities. It was important for the Coalition to have current information about the Gwinnett community to guide development of the strategic plan. As expected, the information collected allowed planning partners to determine where to emphasize activity and program development as well as how to direct resource distribution.
Strengthening Individuals and Families
- All Gwinnett residents will maximize their physical health.
- Physical health services will be available to all Gwinnett residents.
- All Gwinnett residents will maximize their level of independence and have access to needed support services.
- All Gwinnett families will be free from violence and abuse such as child abuse, elder abuse, and intimate partner abuse.
- Mental health and substance abuse services will be available to all residents of Gwinnett County.
Positive Child and Youth Development
- All Gwinnett children and youth will refrain from high-risk behaviors that lead to addiction, pregnancy, disease transmission, violence and truancy.
- All Gwinnett children and youth will be prepared for and successful in school.
- All Gwinnett children and youth will develop positive character skills and become involved in their communities.
- All Gwinnett children and youth will have equal access to resources and services.
Strengthening Communities
- All Gwinnett residents will be actively involved citizens and live in neighborhoods that are safe from crime and health hazards.
- All Gwinnett residents will have access to a continuum of housing options, from emergency shelter to homeownership opportunities.
- All Gwinnett residents will have opportunities to maximize their economic self-sufficiency.
- Gwinnett County will be a community of service providers and neighborhoods that provide equal access to resources and services.
Improving Communications
- The Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services will have strong internal and external mechanisms for communication.
Strengthening Resources
- Stable and adequate funding will be available to support collaboration in Gwinnett County particularly the infrastructure needed for the Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services to provide services in the areas of planning, monitoring, limited program administration, community outreach, and fundraising.
- The Coalition will provide valued support for strategic resource development focused on achieving desired results from the interagency, inter-system Coalition-wide plan. These efforts will be further focused on prevention and early intervention.
- To provide a forum for volunteer development and utilization.
THE COALITION'S BOARD OF DIRECTORS (56)
Board members represent the following community sectors:
COUNTY GOVERNMENT (6)
- Planning Director
- Health and Human Service Division Director
- Juvenile Court Judge
- Police Chief
- Library Director
- Human Relations Director
STATE GOVERNMENT (6)
- Department of Family and Childrens Services Director
- Community Service Board Director
- Regional Board Director
- Regional Board Member
- Public Health Director
- Department of Labor Manager
SERVICE PROVIDERS (4)
- Annandale Village
- Gwinnett Hospital System
- GUIDE (Gwinnett United in Drug Education)
- Gwinnett Housing Resource Partnership
SCHOOLS (4)
- Buford School Superintendent
- Buford School Board Member
- Gwinnett School Superintendent
- Gwinnett School Board Member
CORPORATE/PROFESSIONAL SERVICES (19)
- Large Size Corporations (7)
- Medium Size Corporations (4)
- Small Size Corporations (4)
- Professional Services (4)
FUNDERS (9)
- United Way (2)
- Gwinnett Foundation (2)
- Churches (4)
- Nordson Foundation
OTHER GROUPS (7)
- Chamber of Commerce
- Municipal Association
- Homeowners Association
- Consumer Representative
- Community At Large
- Parent Representative
- Youth Representative
Each of the Coalition Council's Board of Directors works with numerous other community persons through five organized Councils that reflect each of the five strategic directions. They are the:
These Councils oversee numerous committees that are involved in implementing strategies designed to move the community forward toward reaching each Council's goals. This organizational structure is designed to be inclusive and interdependent in nature. Through each of the Council's various committees, the structure involves over 300 individuals representing health and human service providers, business leaders, parents, youth, government, and community groups and individuals.
Anyone interested in participating in this exciting community-wide effort to improve the well being of individuals living in Gwinnett County can contact Ellen Gerstein at ellen@gwinnettcoalition.org or by phone at (770) 995-3339.
