Summary
The UNITY RoadMap Gauge can provide a snapshot of your city's efforts, gauge your city's level of effort and effectiveness, and prioritize areas of focus for a city committed to preventing violence.
HOW IS MY CITY DOING?
Introduction: Despite efforts by residents and elected officials, many cities across the country still grapple with violence. Violence is interfering with young people's ability to be successful. Young people are growing up in unsafe environments with limited opportunities. Violence is not inevitable. It is a predictable behavior in the unsafe environments where young people live. Cities spend countless resources addressing violence after the fact -- in the form of criminal justice and law enforcement costs, medical and social services costs, and lost revenue. The costs are a challenge to a city's economic independence. Cities can take action to prevent violence before it occurs by focusing on partnerships, prevention, and strategy. The UNITY RoadMap delineates these essential elements - the who, what, and how-- for cities to effectively and sustainably prevent violence before it occurs.
Purpose: This UNITY RoadMap Gauge can be used by individuals or groups, informally or as part of a planning process, to:
- provide a snapshot of efforts within a city
- enable those interested to gauge their city's level of effort and effectiveness
- help prioritize areas of focus for a city committed to preventing violence.
You can use the interactive web-based version [under development] which allows you to link to more information about each item, including what other cities might be doing, or you can print out a PDF of the tool and use it that way.
Directions:
For each of the characteristics associated with the 9 UNITY RoadMap elements (organized by partnerships, prevention, and strategy), rate how well your city is doing in terms of 1) having something in place, 2) level of effort, 3) effectiveness, and 4) prioritization.
- EXISTING: Is this in place at all? Using a check ( ) or an X, put a mark next to the items that are in place in some way in your city with regards to preventing violence before it occurs.
- EFFORT: How hard is your city trying? Using a percentage rating from 0% - 100%, rate how much effort your city is putting into accomplishing each item with regards to preventing violence before it occurs.
- EFFECTIVENESS: How well is your city doing?For each item, rate how well your city is doing on a grading scale of A-F, A being fully successful and F, failing with regards to preventing violence before it occurs.
- PRIORITIZATION: What is most important to focus on?Assign a priority rating to each item [(H), medium (M), and low (L)] corresponding to how important you think it is that your city focuses on improving that particular issue to prevent violence before it occurs.
UNITY is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and The California Wellness Foundation (TCWF). UNITY's content is solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC, or TCWF.