Official Oakland community assessment

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Oakland

(Topeka, KS 66616)

Presented by Brooke Brewer, Emily Brown, Meloni Montgomery, Amanda Rice, & Alexandra Tapang

+Boundaries

North: Kansas River

South: 2nd Street

East: NE Strait Ave.

West: Kansas River

+Community Core

People of the community: Primarily Caucasian Some Hispanic, African American, American Indian and

others. Most residents are employed Variety of households: Married couples, married couples with

children, and single parents Wide age range

+Community Core

Churches in the community: Sacred Heart Parish, North Rock Baptist Temple, Oakland Church of the Nazarene, Joyful Harvest Church, Oakland Presbyterian Church, Oakland Christian Church, Oakland United Methodist Church, Our Land of Guadalupe, Grace Baptist Church

Ethnicities: 30.1% German, 14.6% Irish, 10.5% Hispanic, 9.5% English, & 3.5% French.

96.3% of the community speak English and 3.6% speak Spanish.

There are two Hispanic restaurants in this community: La Siesta Restaurant and La Fiesta

Values, beliefs, & culture

+Community Core

Suburban community

Lower-middle socioeconomic status

Mostly English speaking community.

Lifestyle & Characteristics

+Community Core

Population: 5,968 residents

Male: 2, 949 (49.4%) Female: 3,020 (50.6%)

Average household size: 2.4 people

Average family size: 3 members

Median Age:  Males: 33.8 years  Females: 38.2 years

Education level: Most residents have a high school diploma or equivalent

17.5% of adults in community are married with children

44.3% of adults in community are marrried

Demographics

+Community Core

Sight: Clean, older homes, people walking around, children playing, most houses and lawns are well kept.

Hear: Overall quiet, very little traffic noise, children playing.

Smell: Chappell's Backyard BBQ, Pizza Parlor, Brass Rail, La Fiesta, La Siesta Restaurant, Mentzer's Great Fast Food, Tilton's,  Marlene Bakery, Panderia Reynosa Bakery.

Taste: Clean air, no distinct smell

Feel/Relational response: Residents were willing to answer our questions, and they were friendly. Some of the participants are current Washburn University students.

Windshield Survey

+Community Core

Who: People living and working in the area (20 participants)

Where: Oakland, KS – Tilton’s, Oakland Community Center, Fire Station #6

Questions & Results/Responses: Do you like living in this area?

Yes: 20 No: 0

Do you feel safe in this neighborhood? Yes: 18 No: 2

Neighborhood Interview

+Community Core

What kind of improvements would you like to see for the neighborhood?

“Less gang members” “Better maintenance of property” “Better citizen involvement” “More police watch” “Stronger police presence” “More street lights” “More intersection traffic control” – lacks yield signs “Better traffic control” – “kids are getting hit by cars” “Improve parks for kids”

Neighborhood Interview

+Community Core

How do you travel in this area? Personal Car: 16 Public Transport: 4 Walk: 0

Where do you receive health care services? “Cotton-O’Neil Clinic” “St. Francis” “Stormont Vail”

What do you think of the quality of education your children are receiving in school? “Poor level” “Teachers have low

quality teaching” “Poor discipline and no

real consequences” “Needs improved IEP” “Disagree with ‘No

Child Left Behind’” “Good” – Street State

Neighborhood Interview

+Subsystems

Physical Environment Most homes in the neighborhood were well kept. Homes

seemed to be older, most built in the 1940-50’s. Some homes had clutter in the front yard, and paint chipping from the exterior.

The neighborhood did not seem to have many sidewalks. Most walks did not seem adequate, many were broken and had grass/weeds growing through the cracks.

Could see families interacting in the streets and on porches. Seemed like a family orientated neighborhood.

Air quality Index - 40 (0-50) Air quality is considered satisfactory, and air pollution poses little or no risk. Air smells and does not appear to have any smell of pollution.

Water quality index- 37 (0-100). 37 is considered low susceptibility.

+Subsystems Education:

USD 501 provides preschool, elementary, jr high, and high schools.

Schools available in the Oakland area are Lundgren Elementary, State Street, Scott Computer Technology Magnet, Chase Middle School, Highland Park High School. The private schools is Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Extracurricular activities- sports, after school programs at Oakland Community Center, and skate park. The Community Center also offers classes for preschoolers. School nurses are available at all schools. Parents as Teachers is also available to families. Topeka and Shawnee County Library is available to the neighborhood.

Graduation Rate 2010-2011- 70.4% Dropout Rate 2010-2011- 3.6%.

+Subsystems Transportation & safety:

Many residents have their vehicle and use that as a means for transportation. Public transportation (Topeka Transit) is also available for the community to use.  School bus transportation is available for the children.

Air/water quality monitored by KDHE Bureau of Air/Water. Fire Station #6, Topeka Police Department patrol the

neighborhood. Garbage company (Waste Management) for sanitation. Sidewalks seemed to need repair, would not be able to

easily ride a bike on. During interviews: 18 out of 20 felt safe in their

neighborhood. We did not see many traffic lights or stop signs in the neighborhood during survey of neighborhood.

Crime Rate: Topeka has a high crime rate -- mostly thefts.

+Subsystems

Politics & government: Mayor: William W. Bunten City Council:

District 1 Karen Hiller District 2 John Alcala District 3 Sylvia Ortiz District 4 Denise Everhart District 5 Larry Wolgast (Deputy Mayor) District 6 Chad Manspeaker District 7 Bob Archer District 8 Andrew Gray District 9 Richard Harmon 

+Subsystems Health & social services:

Both Stormont-Vail and St. Francis Hospitals are located in central Topeka. Had an adult care center.

Cotton-O’neil clinic available to the neighborhood which is located right after the Sardou Bridge.

During Interview: 12 participants that used primary care physicians. When asked regarding main hospital preferences, 14 prefer St. Francis Hospital while 6 prefer Stormont-Vail .

Chronic Conditions: Arthritis, Diabetes, Lung Disease, Heart Disease.

+Subsystems Communications:

Residents gather at many of the local churches, community center, and local school events.

Newspaper: Topeka Capital Journal Formal communication: newspapers, radio, television,

telephone, and postal service. Informal communication: word of mouth, school

newsletters, bulletin boards at schools/local stores/community center, church, public library, personal/public email.

Economics: Average hourly wage for Topeka: $19.24/hr. Average yearly

income:$38,960 Unemployment rate: 7.2%, Food stamps and WIC are used

and accepted at the local stores in Topeka. Tilton is one of grocery stores in the Oakland neighborhood.

Also has a small bakery.

+Subsystems Recreation:

School sports and local summer sports through Shawnee County Parks & Rec local skate park and community center

Neighborhood has community garden behind Oakland Community Center, playgrounds/school playgrounds for children,

Public swimming pools in Topeka Children also play in their own yards. Fiesta Mexicana is hosted by Our Lady of Guadalupe yearly

in the Oakland neighborhood and is available to all of Topeka and surrounding areas

+Subsystem

connectedness of the subsystems

+Boundaries Barriers

Conceptual: Individuals are adaptive to their community to where other

communities act as a culture shock to them. Many have lived in this community there whole life thus not giving them opportunities those other communities may have to offer.

Oakland is becoming more and more prone to criminal activity as fewer people feel a sense of ownership toward the neighborhood, as stated in the Oakland Neighborhood Plan.

Concrete No modern street drainage in parts of Oakland Street and sidewalks do not connect to neighborhood

amenities High traffic speeds within the neighborhood

+Boundaries

Normal line of defenses Community Building: The community comes together to

make the neighborhood a stronger advocate for itself Neighborhood patrols and the Police Department assist with

keeping the streets safe and protecting the neighborhood Community Gardens: encourages youth to participate with

community garden.

Flexible line of defenses The community worked together to “Clean-up” to avoid

environmental code problems In the destruction of houses in the past, they developed a

“neighbor-to-neighbor” housing Rehab Program

+Boundaries

Lines of resistance Neighborhood Watch Crosswalks for school Speed bumps to prevent speeding More stop signs and yield signs More street lights

Supporting services Church Services Community Projects

Night Out Against Crime – funded by “Party in the Park” Neighborhood Clean up

+Nursing Process

Do you feel safe in this neighborhood?

Assessment Data (Subjective & Objective)

+Nursing Process

What kind of improvements would you like to see for the neighborhood?

“Less gang members” “Better maintenance of property” “Better citizen involvement”

“More police watch” “Stronger police presence” “More street lights” “More intersection traffic control” – lacks yield signs “Better traffic control” – “kids are getting hit

by cars” “Improve parks for kids”

Assessment Data (Subjective & Objective)

+Nursing Process

Community nursing diagnosis: Oakland Community is at risk for

ineffective protection related to lack of police presence.

Rationale: Even though 90% of the interviewees stated they felt safe

in their neighborhood half of the improvements stated were related to stronger police presence. If the police simply drove through the neighborhood more often, there may be less gang involvement or activity in the neighborhood. Also if there was a stronger police presence, the need for better traffic control may be recognized. After speaking with the firefighters, the need for stronger police presence magnified.

+Nursing Process Recommendations (research, education, practice):

We recommend speaking with the police department or starting a petition to request stronger police presence in the neighborhood.

Another way to raise awareness would be to ask the fire department to participate in any form.

Include more community events promoting awareness against crime in the neighborhood.

Present a nursing project at the community center regarding safety in the neighborhood

Keeping track of crime rates through the police department

+Implementation Potential project based on assessment

Participate in “Party in the Park.” It is a community event that helps raise money for “National Night Out Against Crime.”

Rationale for implementation Along with increasing police presence in the neighborhood,

this can help promote community spirit and police-community partnership for a safer neighborhood.

This will provide a great opportunity for nursing students to learn more on how small contributions such as this event can positively influence the community’s spirit and health.

Even with a diverse community, as a whole, everyone shows willingness to see change especially when it comes to their safety & security.

Change agents Nursing students, police officers, fire fighters.

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The EndThank you for your time listening to our presentation. Enjoy your day!

+References

https://www.topekapublicschools.net/schools/http://www.topeka.org/http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/Oakland-Topeka-KS.htmlhttp://svapp15586.ksde.org/k12/CountyStatics.aspx?org_no=D0501http://www.kdheks.gov/arthritis/kohp.htmhttp://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.ks_topeka_msa.htm http://www.topeka.org/planning/oakland_neigh_plans.shtml http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ks/topeka/oakland/#desc https://sites.google.com/site/oaklandnia/annual-events/party-in-the-park