About HUD Ideas in Action/Frequently asked Questions

HUD's final FY 2010-2015 Strategic Plan is available here: http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/program_offices/cfo/stratplan

HUD wants to hear your feedback, so put forth your best ideas on the Strategic Plan!

1. Top Ideas
2. Hot Ideas
3. New Ideas
4. Accepted Ideas
5. Completed Ideas 2

1. 175 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   Subgoal 5D: Culture Change……. Strategies………. 2. Develop and implement policies and programs that fos

   Subgoal 5D: Culture Change…….
   Strategies……….
   2. Develop and implement policies and programs that foster improved health and well being of all employees.
   ENFORCE THE NO-FEAR ACT
   A more efficient department makes for more productive employees. More productive employees will also result if bad... more

   Subgoal 5D: Culture Change…….
   Strategies……….
   2. Develop and implement policies and programs that foster improved health and well being of all employees.
   ENFORCE THE NO-FEAR ACT
   A more efficient department makes for more productive employees. More productive employees will also result if bad managers are disciplined as is required by law. This will improve morale.

   I was an engineer with the Agency for twenty years at the New York Office located in the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in lower Manhattan. In December, 1999, I initiated an EEO complaint against the Agency and my supervisors. That complaint dealt with the agency's failure to follow the law concerning my request for a reasonable accommodation based upon my disability and subsequent reprisal by my supervisors for having filed a complaint. After going through HUD's EEO process and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, my attorney filed suit in Federal Court in May, 2002. The case was settled prior to trial in May, 2003.
   On May 5, 2004 I filed a Formal EEO complaint, the basis of which was retaliation for my prior protected EEO activity. I alleged that the Director of the Office of Public Housing, [Name redacted], had given me two suspensions based on her retaliatory animus toward me. The two suspensions were based on lies created by [Name redacted]; they had no basis in fact.
   The case proceeded to a hearing before an EEOC judge. The judge issued his decision in my favor in April, 2006. The Judge found that [Name redacted] had discriminated against me (twice) in retaliation for my prior protected activity.
   I am writing to you because, to date, [Name redacted] has not received any disciplinary action for her unlawful actions.
   The Notification and Federal Employee Anti-discrimination and Retaliation (No Fear) Act states, among other things, that employees who engage in misconduct be disciplined. This Act was signed by President Bush in May, 2002. Marsha Coleman-Adebayo , a senior policy analyst at the EPA, was a driving force behind the creation of the no fear law. The system before No-Fear, Coleman-Adebayo said, has been anything but just to employees who suffer years of discrimination or retaliation at the hands of managers who are never punished for their actions. She went on “The spirit of the No-Fear law was that managers were to face major consequences as a result of findings of discrimination against them. We will demand that the government live up to the spirit of the law. These are not victimless crimes, and for someone to get slapped on the hand when you have violated someone’s human and civil rights, you do not have a right to work for the federal government. (emphasis added)”
   The law, designed to hold agencies accountable for discrimination and retaliation in the workplace, is to result in tough penalties, including termination, for federal managers who violate a co-worker’s civil rights.
   [Name redacted] has also violated the code of ethics that every federal employee is required to uphold. She lied under oath numerous times while giving her affidavit during the investigative phase of the EEOC process.
   In light of the above-described actions by [Name redacted], I submit that the appropriate disciplinary action is removal.
   I have written to her supervisor, as well as to upper level management at HUD, many times in an effort to see that a penalty is imposed upon [Name redacted]. They have ignored every one of my appeals.
   My concern is that amoral managers such as [Name redacted] are not being punished for their disgraceful and illegal actions. The No Fear Act is an empty shell. No outside agency is charged with the responsibility to enforce its provisions; not the Office of Special Counsel, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission nor any other agency.

   It is left to the agency itself, such as HUD, to police its own managers. This is not being done.

   I retired from HUD in 2008 because of the hostile conditions under which I have been forced to work. These conditions have been the sole result of the actions of [Name redacted]. If the Agency took its responsibilities regarding disciplining its managers when they commit atrocious acts seriously, then it would not be necessary for me to leave.
   I have filed a complaint with the MSPB charging Constructive discharge.

   by anonymous | 9 comments
2. 155 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   put up a YouTube style video at login, of your image of your ideal community, for staff

   Strat Plans are usually shelved after creation, because they don't really mean anything. People put them together kind of like I used to put Lincoln Logs together, when I was 5 years old, but at the end of playtime they all go back in the box. If you want to change that pattern, and God bless y... more

   Strat Plans are usually shelved after creation, because they don't really mean anything. People put them together kind of like I used to put Lincoln Logs together, when I was 5 years old, but at the end of playtime they all go back in the box. If you want to change that pattern, and God bless you if you do, you would start by having a COMPELLING VISCERAL VISUAL IMAGE at login, every time every staffer starts their computer. YouTube is full of motivational videos. Why the heck can't we have one? Get some compelling music, I don't know, Olympic marches, and walk through an ideal community. There are walking communities in this country now that would be a good place to start. Make the Strat Plan part of daily life. Let it infest every activity of the work day. Since the Outstandings are now rationed, you could take all that energy that no longer earns one Outstandings, and channel it into reporting useful data, anecdotes, whatever, into a main database, to support Strat Plan goals. I remember seeing that Coolio song used for HUD videos, years back, from Dangerous Minds. God it was depressing. How about something uplifting? Something that would make staff want to stand up and cheer? I hear Shaun described as a near genius. Genius counts for nothing, gentlemen, the only report card is results. Results start from people who have their hearts in what they do.

   by anonymous | 5 comments
3. 154 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   think bigger. A LOT bigger.

   This plan is better than anything before it. As I look at it, it is just not big enough. Where is the project to create a Chicken Soup for the Soul book, of inspiring stories of people who overcame great odds to accomplish something great, in subsidized housing? People in subsidized housing ar... more

   This plan is better than anything before it. As I look at it, it is just not big enough. Where is the project to create a Chicken Soup for the Soul book, of inspiring stories of people who overcame great odds to accomplish something great, in subsidized housing? People in subsidized housing are either ignored or demonized. Where is the plan to develop a simple course of training- using different modules according to need- to take someone with a 3r grade reading level, to being an entrepreneur? Pandora Patton was doing this kind of work all by herself, 14 years ago, in 3rd world countries with a lot fewer resources than this country has. The Mennonites do this kind of work, overseas. Where is the plan to take the VITA handbooks, and adapt the technology to American needs? Where is the detailed plan to invite public input, and develop the best web resources in the world? With all due respect, we live in AMERICA. America is the most creative country in the world. We need a Strat Plan to grow into. Mr. Sims, you want wow level service- we need a wow level strat plan. It needs to be a whole lot bigger than it is. Where is the plan to invite people like Tony Robbins, Jack Canfield, and many others, to come up with ideas to help people transition out of subsidized housing into self-sufficiency? HUD has a unique position- it is the crossroads of many, many organizations that don't know about each other. Where is the detailed plan to have web-based networking? In the past, HUD's forums were so hard to use nobody used them. This forum broke that barrier. Mr. SIms, we need the equivalent of the speech the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King gave in DC, the "I have a dream" speech. We need an inspiring vision, in this plan. We need a plan that doesn't just speak to the head, we need a plan that speaks to the hearts of every citizen, that sets them on fire with the possibilities, and desire to do something for their community, now. You guys talk big. Good. Let's see a BIG strat plan. We need to shoot for the stars.

   by J Yablonski | 5 comments
4. 135 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   think about more positive goals

   Look at these goals:
   ▪▪Reducing the number of households with worst case housing needs.
   ▪▪Increasing the proportion of HUD-assisted families in low-poverty and racially diverse
   communities.
   yy Ending Homelessness
   ▪▪Reducing the number of homeless families.
   ▪▪Reducing the number of chronical... more

   Look at these goals:
   ▪▪Reducing the number of households with worst case housing needs.
   ▪▪Increasing the proportion of HUD-assisted families in low-poverty and racially diverse
   communities.
   yy Ending Homelessness
   ▪▪Reducing the number of homeless families.
   ▪▪Reducing the number of chronically homeless individuals.
   ▪▪Reducing the number of homeless veterans to 59,000 by June 2012 (jointly with the Department of Veterans Affairs).
   Good as they are, they are all negative. It's like losing weight. Are you inspired by the thought of losing weight? Most aren't. The way to release all that weight, though, is to quit thinking about the weight, and to generate an inspiring vision of what it would be like to be healthy, and coincidentally without the weight. Inspirational exercise videos, exercise toys, anything that turns on positive feelings. I read about a sales office, where when a significant goal was met, the person who met it got to ring a huge gong. The effect was electric, everyone wanted to ring the gong, and sales went up a lot. How do we celebrate success? Oh wait. We don't. How much sense does that make? And on those goals- they are fine- however you need to add another goal- fostering the creation of self-sufficient, vibrant, healthy communities that TAKE CARE OF THEIR OWN PROBLEMS. Because that is what healthy communities do. Modern medicine manages and treats disease, which is why, outside of the emergency room, it is largely ineffective, and extremely expensive. A much more cost effective approach is healing. We need to spend more time healing, than managing disease. Many people don't like this idea, they think they will work themselves out of a job. You know, if I was good enough to work myself out of this job, I would be good enough to make 7 figures a year, and take a week's vacation every month. Keeping people dependent is an insult to their spirits. Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, and you feed him and his family for a lifetime. This simply truth is so mundane it is invisible.

   by anonymous | 4 comments
5. 114 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   HUD Homes, Homeless and section 8

   Put homeless people into vacant HUD properties rather than using Federal funds to pay lanlords under the section8/Housing Choice Voucher Program. The tenant would remain responsbile for paying their 30% which would then go towards home ownership.

   by anonymous | 10 comments
6. 101 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   needs to have a lot more detail in some of the steps. In fact, we need dynamic input

   with feedback. The idea about improving educational outcomes, as one example among many, needs to be fleshed out a whole lot better. How are you gonna do that? Can you get President Obama to send a letter to any kid who pulls at least a B average, from the projects, the way he does for people ... more

   with feedback. The idea about improving educational outcomes, as one example among many, needs to be fleshed out a whole lot better. How are you gonna do that? Can you get President Obama to send a letter to any kid who pulls at least a B average, from the projects, the way he does for people on their birthdays? Hugh Price, formerly of the Urban League, had some absolutely wonderful ideas about how to do this- how are you going to pull in those ideas? I can think of at least 100 ideas, myself, and realistically we need at least 1,000 ideas to really make this happen. We need to stop reinventing the wheel everywhere, and start having real Business Intelligence, or well Community Intelligence, to give each other a leg up.

   by anonymous | 3 comments
7. 73 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   For Goal 5: Make available Phone Interpreters

   When clients call in, not all can speak English. From 2005-2008 HUD had a 866 hotline number where one could connect with a HUD language interpreter, while having the client on the line, who would translate the client's concerns. This was specially useful during the crisis of Hurricanes Katrina... more

   When clients call in, not all can speak English. From 2005-2008 HUD had a 866 hotline number where one could connect with a HUD language interpreter, while having the client on the line, who would translate the client's concerns. This was specially useful during the crisis of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita when several calls came in with need for a variety of language assistance. Please reintroduce this invaluable program to help improve how HUD does business.

   by Rita Vaz | 3 comments
8. 70 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   think about task groups, or interest groups

   We need a detailed Web Resource List, to support this. HUD does not have anywhere near enough of staff formally assigned to do this, which is a major bottleneck. The resources list is a significant part of the fuel for getting to your goals, and it should be something that grows regularly, almo... more

   We need a detailed Web Resource List, to support this. HUD does not have anywhere near enough of staff formally assigned to do this, which is a major bottleneck. The resources list is a significant part of the fuel for getting to your goals, and it should be something that grows regularly, almost as if it were a living being of information. HUD needs to foster Interest Groups, including staff and clients, in areas from microenterprise, to community gardening/Permaculture, to doing youth programs on shoestring financing, to family reunification, to AA and addiction groups, to healthy food choices, to creating urban groceries and food cooperatives, to clothing cooperatives, to cooperative childcare, to a computer center interest group perhaps under the Neighborhood Network concept but additional to what is done now, to every other piece of the set of programs necessary to bring people into self-sufficiency. I will not use the word committee, because of the connotations that little gets done, let's use the word interest group, where people cooperate in sharing ideas and resources. If you are serious about this Strat Plan, and I think you are, you will need interest groups, to develop what needs to be developed. You don't have the time to do this yourself. If you are serious about what you say, this is absolutely essential, and furthermore at this time, you don't know what even half of the interest areas will have to be to accomplish the goals you state. This concept is not new to HUD; I have been part of such groups in the past, however management mostly didn't listen to anything that came out of such groups.

   If you don't do this, you'll only have the current top down numbers addiction mentality, which will not produce the results you say you want.

   by anonymous | 2 comments
9. 58 votes

   vote

   Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

   Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

   • 
   • 
   • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

     Sign in

     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 
     • 

   Email

   Name

   Password

   Sign in

   I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

   Close

   Close

   You have 20 votes remaining

   • 1 vote
   • 2 votes
   • 3 votes

   stop paying rent. help buy a home.

   section 8 hud. program pays out money to help pay rent. if this program helped people buy the house that they are renting.one day the person will own the home and no longer need section 8.

   by anonymous | 4 comments
10. 57 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    GIVE THE DISABLED PEOPLE A CHANCE TO OWN AFFORDABLE HOUSING INSTEAD OF RENTING

    DISABLED PEOPLE WOULD LOVE TO BUY INSTEAD OF RENT, BUT THEY NEED HELP WITH THE REPAIRS WHICH A GRANT CAN HELP THE DISABLED PEOPLE BECAUSE YOU CANT HARLDLEY FIND ANY ONE WHO ACCEPT SECTION 8. AND THE ROOMS ARE NOT BIG ENOUGH AND NOT ENOUGH AMMENITIES WASHER AND DRYER HOOKUPS GARAGE A NICE SPACIUOS YARD ECT

    by anonymous | 5 comments
11. 50 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    Pay differential for Supervisors/Managers

    Yesterday, we received the new approval for Supervisors and Managers to be allowed to telework. This is much appreciated and a very long time coming.
    One of the items pointed out was that this was a measure to hopefully retain and encourage staff interest in moving into management. I believe... more

    Yesterday, we received the new approval for Supervisors and Managers to be allowed to telework. This is much appreciated and a very long time coming.
    One of the items pointed out was that this was a measure to hopefully retain and encourage staff interest in moving into management. I believe this move is excellent but the actions need to go a step further. There needs to be a pay differential for managers and supervisor. Many of our staff grades are GS 13 or higher. They are receiving the same pay without the added responsibilities. I believe that a difference in pay scale would be a motivator for staff who has the abilities to be managers to step up to the plate and take on those added responsibilities.

    by anonymous | 1 comment
12. 44 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    Goals 3B & C - Improve Health and Economic Stability and Self Sufficiency Through Housing

    It is a fact that people living in poverty often suffer from poor nutrition. Community gardening is a good way to provide low/mod families with an extra source of food, increase their intake of healthy foods and teach children that food doesn't come from a bag or container. If we allowed communi... more

    It is a fact that people living in poverty often suffer from poor nutrition. Community gardening is a good way to provide low/mod families with an extra source of food, increase their intake of healthy foods and teach children that food doesn't come from a bag or container. If we allowed communities to pay for community gardens with CDBG funds, or gave bonus points to Homeless projects which had a community gardening component, we could help to meet these two goals, as well as having an impact on the environment by locals not purchasing as much food that was trucked in from miles away. The impact on families would be large, with a comparitively small investment of funds. Additionally, many of the university agriculture extensions will work with people to help them get started with gardens and also show them how to can and preserve their food, so that they can enjoy nutritious foods during the winter months. Where necessary, programs could be tailored to include an educational piece about nutrition and cooking, for people who may not know how to cook some of the items grown in the community garden.

    by JKM | 7 comments
13. 41 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    We need to think Strategically, as part of the strat plan.

    We need better measures of effectiveness, and even of community health. Human services are a large part of the budget. A lot of that is Medicaid. OK. How do we know the services work? Where are the measures?

    People claim that the needs of our citizens require an even bigger financial comm... more

    We need better measures of effectiveness, and even of community health. Human services are a large part of the budget. A lot of that is Medicaid. OK. How do we know the services work? Where are the measures?

    People claim that the needs of our citizens require an even bigger financial commitment. How do they know? Duplication, a lack of coordination and simply spending money on approaches with no proven effectiveness is rampant. We can't afford this.

    We need accurate, human-services yardsticks. Where is the agreed-upon way to measure the effectiveness of human services. When we build a bridge, we build it to engineering specifications to make sure it is adequate and no lives are lost by its failure. No such standards are consistently applied to services, yet even more lives may be at stake.

    Programs funded could use long-term studies in peer-reviewed, scientific journals to help prove their effectiveness. We owe it to those being served to provide effective and proven care.

    We need to pick one screening tool: Although effective treatment of persons with services needs begins with accurate screening, nobody really coordinates clinicians' or even social workers' assessment tools used to measure individual problems, leaving it up to the preference of each provider. This means agencies can use dozens of different measures that assess some problems while ignoring others. Misdiagnosing a mental illness or ignoring substance abuse can be the result, ill-serving the public and wasting taxpayer's money.

    Washington state requires state agencies to use the same highly effective screening tool to measure mental health disorders and substance abuse dependency, including an assessment of suicide risk, for adolescents and adults. This forced clinicians who worked with widely varied populations in different agencies all to get on the same page. Washington has saved money, and lives, as a result.

    We need to build communities to solve problems. Malcolm Gladwell wrote a New Yorker article about "Million Dollar Murray," the nickname given to a homeless man in Denver who cost a million dollars a year in emergency and other services because the city managed his homelessness rather than solving it. There are tens of thousands of Murrays in our country, yet agencies and the federla government do little to exert the leadership to fix these problems.

    Much good can be done when a strong, local human services department coordinates regional help for citizens. Some communities have gotten churches, the police department, local businesses, the hospital and even neighborhood pizzerias involved in providing help for the homeless on cold winter nights. Churches may take turns providing shelter while volunteers prepare the food. Each night, social workers interview individuals to help find the homeless permanent shelter, evaluate their problems and help them better their lives. The approach is practical, inexpensive and strengthens the entire community. Ignoring these problems, besides being shortsighted, is an expensive approach we cant afford.

    We are not going to see a large influx of new dollars, which means we have to use what we have far more effectively. A Seal team of under 10, in certain situations, can do far more than a battalion of 600. We need to start thinking that way. This kind of thinking needs to infuse the Strat Plan and everything else we do.

    by anonymous | 2 comments
14. 39 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    Implement the Plan, Empower the staff, Work Smarter Not Harder

    I'd like to see the following:

    1.Strategic Plan Implemented as soon as possible.

    2. Empower the staff with tools, incentives and attainable definitive objectives.

    3. Allow us to Work Smarter and Not Harder.

    by Gwendolyn Berry | 2 comments
15. 38 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    develop an aggressive program to hire veterans utilizing special hiring authorities

    by anonymous | -3 comments

    This seems like an interesting idea but it could benefit from having more specific information. Please use the comments section to provide more input about how you envision this program being set up.

    Rachel Admin
16. 35 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    require managers to recruit vets for on-job training through VA Wounded Warrior/Coming Home to Work

    by anonymous | 2 comments
17. 33 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    You've come a long way- and you need a new Paradigm

    Coyote Medicine, by Dr. Lewis Madrona, a native American MD, talks about doctors. Doctors are the extreme of what ails our culture. They are overwhelmed in med school with all kinds of disconnected knowledge, that is not holistic. The result is a medical system that is No. 1 worldwide for cost... more

    Coyote Medicine, by Dr. Lewis Madrona, a native American MD, talks about doctors. Doctors are the extreme of what ails our culture. They are overwhelmed in med school with all kinds of disconnected knowledge, that is not holistic. The result is a medical system that is No. 1 worldwide for cost per capita, and No. 72 among nations for results. You are getting closer to a holistic goal, but you aren't there yet. You have metaphorically put most of the engine together, and 3 of the 4 wheels, but you still need to install a few parts before you can drive this baby on the road. So. If you actually applied all those good ideas, and the other good ideas you'll pick up on the way- what would you have? If we already had ideal communities, magnificent places to live, that most if not all agreed were wonderful paradises- what would we have? Because we don't know. We know only the pathology of the average. If you don't know, you won't get there. You'll be overwhelmed with detail that doesn't support the goal of health. You need a Vision, an image of that ideal community. You need it in pictures, and words that evoke pictures. Right now, we have the cans, but we don't have the plastic thing to hold them together. Right now, what we have is a vague desire to go somewhere, and we know something about the increments of how to get there. I remember when my child told me about going to Disneyworld. Was there talk of what kind of food there'd be on the plane, how long we'd wait in the security line, what kind of clothes to bring, whether we needed sunscreen? Oh no. There was just a POWERFUL VISION OF ALREADY BEING THERE, which filled that kid up with energy. That energy washed over the obstacles like a river in flood over a dam. All those technical details worked themselves out, in the process, and they weren't that difficult. The key was the VISION. Without Vision, the people perish. Shaun, Ron, what is your VISION? If you had to explain your vision to a 10 year old child, how would you do it? What would you say to them? If that 10 year old child was walking through that ideal community, what would they see, hear, and feel? How would they know it was ideal? We need that VISION. We'll know it's done right when it's so inspiring that people just leap in to help, when you have to add extra bandwidth to handle all the useful info coming in, sorted by topic, on a HUDWiki. You'll know it's done right when things start happening just like on a Habitat for Humanity site. You'll know it's done right when people joyfully report on positive indicators, and even make improving their neighborhood a competitive sport. That's how it is with anything that is fun. Fun sells itself. If you heard about a fun club, with a lot of good energy, a happening place - do you have to be forced to go there? No, you find a way. And the one thing this strategic plan lacks is FUN. Where is the fun? How can we make these hard, difficult tasks EASY LIKE THEY ARE FOR A CHILD, by making them fun? How can you hope to accomplish what you say you want, without making it all fun? Shaun, Ron, I'm walking through a community that benefitted from everything in the Strat Plan, in 2015. This place is magnificent, I love living here. I walk the streets. There's no crime- people have hope, and make more money in legal activity. There's no drugs, nobody wants to take the risk of selling them. There's no users, because people don't have emotional pain, they don't need to anesthetize themselves, they have so much more fun being sober. People help each other. There are arts and crafts, it is FUN to live in this community. People come to us from all over the world, to learn how we did it. This place is green- no pesticides are even sold. There are permaculture gardens with food plants, and urban agriculture, making the city green, green, green. There's no racial discrimination, it's too much fun to learn about other people and cultures. This city has it all. So, ok, Shaun and Ron: the plan as constituted has one end- where we are now. It lacks the other end- of the Vision, because not only do we need to plan going out to the Vision, we also need to backplan, from the results back to the chain of activities, to the now. Right now this is one-sided, and not nearly as focused as a Strat Plan needs to be. You mostly got the language of the grey lawyers in their grey suits in their grey offices with grey windows and computer screens out of this, which is good. Now how about we breathe some life into it, with a really inspiring Vision of what is possible? We need a plan that speaks to people (with web infrastructure support we don't have now), one where just about everybody would say, "Omigod! YESSSSSSSSS! I want this! This will be so much fun! How can I get started today? Who can I work with to make stuff happen right now?"

    by anonymous | 1 comment
18. 32 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    Delegate authority WITHIN the field to the lowest possible level.

    by anonymous | 2 comments
19. 29 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    Let the People buy back there homes there losing

    Why not let people buy back there homes there losing for about three hundred a month which is cheaper than rent until they can get on there feet again then raise there rent when they can afford it and let them keep there houses some people have worked twenty years to own there own houses why not ... more

    Why not let people buy back there homes there losing for about three hundred a month which is cheaper than rent until they can get on there feet again then raise there rent when they can afford it and let them keep there houses some people have worked twenty years to own there own houses why not let them save them?

    by anonymous | 1 comment
20. 27 votes

    vote

    Enter your email address Sign in to your profile. Forgot password?

    Email me a new password. …or, sign in with

    • 
    • 
    • Powered by Janrain Previously signed in with one of these?

      Sign in

      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 
      • 

    Email

    Name

    Password

    Sign in

    I agree to the Terms of Service Remember me

    Close

    Close

    You have 20 votes remaining

    • 1 vote
    • 2 votes
    • 3 votes

    put in an all-encompassing detailed Vision of the possible that everyone could accept

    It could look something like this:

    Vision: creating self-sufficient learning communities that support people's growth, physically, emotionally, mentally, economically, and spiritually, where everyone has opportunities to develop and express their gifts, strengths, and abilities. (or use what ... more

    It could look something like this:

    Vision: creating self-sufficient learning communities that support people's growth, physically, emotionally, mentally, economically, and spiritually, where everyone has opportunities to develop and express their gifts, strengths, and abilities. (or use what you have, but really think about this, because this is the living, beating heart of your plan)

    Then you need to define more specific objectives, within that vision. This could take form something like the following:

    COMMUNITY OBJECTIVES:

    CHILDREN AND YOUTH

    We seek to create a vibrant, healthy community where:

    .Children feel supported, grounded, with opportunity and hope in a positive future

    .Children have positive growth opportunities, and responsibilities

    .Children have positive guidance and secure environments

    .Children are honored, esteemed, and respected as human beings, by themselves and others

    .Children learn tools to address pain and anger, their range of emotions are respected, and they have ways to express emotions healthily

    .Children's physical, emotional, spiritual, and vocational needs are addressed, in addition to their mental needs, and they enjoy balanced health in all areas

    .Children are challenged to the extent they should be, learning essential life skills like discipline, trust, respect, and problem solving

    .Inter-generational ties are strong, parenting skills are commonly practiced, and role models are in evidence

    .Adult issues are addressed without trauma to children

    .The responsibility of raising children is joyfully returned to parents, grandparents and community, rather than leaving it by default to formal institutions and the media
    
    .The community welcomes its responsibility for raising children

    .Shortcomings are accepted, and people work openly to overcome them, without stigma

    .Children grow healthily, and are allowed to be children

    .Healthy relationships with elders and others occur

    .People recognize the effect of their actions on children, and choose positive activities

    .Family and community traditions, such as ritual and bonding processes, and rites of passage are practiced

    .Parents are more involved with their children

    .People learn from children and youth

    .Youth are respected and respectful

    .Abuse is consigned to the history books

    .Peer mentors work well

    PEOPLE

    We seek to create a vibrant, healthy community where people:

    .are respected and esteemed by others and themselves
    .have supportive, healthy, loving relationships
    .have opportunity, security, education, autonomy, employment, opportunities for expression, and support
    .have opportunities to grow and express themselves in relationships, family, community life and all other spheres of life.
    .have community support, encouragement and acceptance for their growth, transformation and self improvement
    .know who they are, and have so many positive opportunities
    have opportunities to contribute to family and community
    .are so involved in positive activities that feed their interests they have no time or energy for negative pursuits or addictions
    .are spiritually healthy, free from addiction and a need to abuse, empowered with a healthy sense of self esteem, respected and loved as members of their families and .communities and positive role models for children.
    .have their basic needs met, from within the community wherever possible, using outside resources in an integrated way

    ELDERS

    We seek to create a vibrant, healthy community where:
    .Elders express a mental, physical, emotional/social, spiritual, and even vocational wholeness which inspires all members of the community
    .Elders live in health, in support, free from dysfunctional patterns, providing guidance to youth, and sharing the journey of healing and growth with the younger generation.

    FAMILIES

    We seek to create a vibrant, healthy community where:

    .Families are secure, save havens, in mental, emotional/social, vocational, physical and spiritual balance
    .Families operate at an optimum level, where each member's needs are met, free of addiction and abuse, supportive of the continued growth and development of everyone in the community
    .Useful community values, such as kindness, respect, love, honesty, generosity, unity, responsibility, caring, empathy, sharing, discipline, commitment, nurturing and humility are modelled and practiced
    .Families have internal and external mutual support, that reinforce positive activities

    ECONOMY, EDUCATION, AND GOVERNANCE

    We seek to create a healthy, vibrant, community, where:

    .Everyone has useful, meaningful work
    .government assistance is used to create self-sufficient people and employment
    .Cooperative coalitions of leaders with vision, and clearly defined short and long term goals, produce a healthy economic condition in the community
    .Leaders are constantly developed.
    .Leaders are role models
    .Resources to create opportunities for all are constantly gathered and used efficiently
    .a healthy, sustainable economy promotes financial self reliance and moral and ethical accountability
    .people become contributing citizens, living up to the American ideal

    Generally, this Agreement formalizes a mutual interest, "win-win" relationship, among diverse people, organizations, and agencies working together towards common goals. The goal is fostering programs which foster interrelationships among the residents, the housing owner and management, and other community groups. Resident participation in the determination of programs and activities to be undertaken, working jointly with community groups, and residents of adjacent properties and the community as a whole, is strongly encouraged.

    by anonymous | 1 comment