EAST ST. LOUIS ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

ESLARP Newsletter - January/February 2001

To read this newsletter as a web page visit
  http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/newsletter/0102.htm

Contents:

* SPRING 2001 ESLARP COURSES
* DigitalESL Collaborative
* ESLARP FACULTY FELLOWSHIP
* FEBRUARY OUTREACH WEEKEND
* ESLARP GRANTED BONNER FOUNDATION GRANT
* NTAC NEWS

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SPRING 2001 ESLARP COURSES

   ARCH372 A Collaborative, Interdisciplinary ESLARP Studio Workshop 

The studio will be comprised of interdisciplinary teams working on 
neighborhood master planning and the programming and preliminary 
schematic design of a community facility for the Lansdowne neighborhood
of East St. Louis. 

   LA236/338 Master Planning to enhance quality of life in East St. Louis

An interdisciplinary studio engaged in participatory design/planning to 
revitalize and improve quality of life in the Lansdowne neighborhood of 
E. St. Louis.

   UP378 Community Development Workshop

The Community Development Workshop introduces students to the community 
development practice, from an empowerment planning perspective. Workshop 
students will cooperate with leaders of East St. Louis' Lansdowne Neighborhood 
Steering Committee in designing a five-year revitalization plan for their community.

Read more about the courses at:
   http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/courses/
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DigitalESL Collaborative

The DigitalESL Collaborative sees digital technology as a means for empowering 
all East St. Louis metro area residents to build and sustain a healthy, livable 
community.  We see a team of technology-savvy people who are well connected to 
each other and to different kinds of opportunities in the region and around the 
world.  Through technology, all citizens will have easy access to learning 
opportunities, economic opportunities, and resources for better living.  
Information technology will become part of daily life and expand peoples’ 
thinking and their awareness of these possibilities.

   http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/ntac/digitalesl/
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ESLARP FACULTY FELLOWSHIP

ESLARP granted its first Faculty Fellowship to Dr. Martin Wolske for 
the spring semester. Last semester Dr. Wolske's class met with four 
partnering community-based organizations to assess technology needs 
and begin providing a basic level of technology to these organizations.
Students reconditioned donated computers and set up labs at the four sites.

During spring semester students will work to provide Internet access, 
train people at the sites to be basic administrators of their equipment, to 
add printers, sound cards, etc. to the computers, and to test the usability 
and effectiveness of the labs.

For more information:
   http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/courses/fellow.htm
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FEBRUARY OUTREACH WEEKEND

ESLARP has begun to target the neighborhood of Lansdowne. Volunteers 
successfully surveyed the conditions of over 600 acres in Lansdowne and 
knocked on between 800 and 1000 doors and asking 60 people how they want to see
their neighborhood grow and change. Sunday morning 18 people split up and
traveled to 6 different churches in the Lansdowne area, and  invited people 
to participate in future meetings.

Read more about the weekend at:
   http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/update/index.htm#outreach
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ESLARP GRANTED BONNER FOUNDATION GRANT

The East St. Louis Action Research Project (ESLARP) at the University of
Illinois has been granted $105,000 over the next three years as part of
the Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Foundation's Learn and Serve
Grant. ESLARP and six other community-university partnerships from around
the country have received these funds in order to expand their efforts in
the communities in which they work.

With this grant, ESLARP will work to expand the range of educational
institutions and disciplines that engage in community development projects
in East St. Louis. We will provide financial support for service-learning
courses in these institutions and disciplines, and work to ensure that
these courses address needs and priorities that are identified locally.
ESLARP is excited about this three year project and the opportunity to
work closely with other similar programs throughout the country.
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NTAC NEWS

The Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center (NTAC) is ESLARP's  
local office in East St. Louis. NTAC NEWS is their monthly newsletter 
featuring updates from local partnering organizations and information of
interest to local neighborhood associations and non-profit agencies. 

Take a look at past copies of NTAC News
   http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/ntac/ntacnews/