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Mason Square: Strengthening Community Health through Outreach, Organizing, Linkage, and Support

Summer 2009 – Through the leadership of Assistant Professor Miguel Arce, the Martin Luther King Charter School of Excellence (MLKCS) received funding from the Mason Square Healthy Neighborhood Fund (MSHNF) in collaboration with the Springfield College School of Social Work (SCSSW) and the Springfield College School of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation (SCHPER). Both MLKCS and Springfield College have a record of provided enriching educational opportunities through family activities and community service projects. The mission of MLKCS is to prepare kindergarten through fifth-grade students of Springfield for academic success and engaged citizenship through an emphasis on rigorous, challenging educational experience.

The three schools (i.e., MLKCS, SCSSW, and SCHPER) have joined together to focus on enriching the lives of students at MLKCS, most of whom live in Mason Square, a geographic area comprised of four distinct neighborhoods — Upper Hill, Old Hill, McKnight, and Bay — and has the zip code designation of 01109. The community is comprised of 30,655 individuals who are primarily in the low income bracket and are members of a minority (United States Census Bureau, 2000). “Residents in Mason Square neighborhoods, particularly racial and ethnic populations, experience appalling disparities in health, wealth and opportunity. Black and Latino residents disproportionately experience major health-related burdens…healthy diet and physical activity provides more power in creating health and influencing chronic conditions.”

Strengthening Community Health through Outreach, Organizing, Linkage, and Support (SCHOOLS) has been developed to respond to the unacceptable and growing disparity in health among Mason Square families. SCHOOLS will use MLKCS as the focal point for health services directed toward children and families who are enrolled, many whom reside in the target area. SCHOOLS plans to positively impact students by increasing school attendance and participation, engaging community members, increasing school performance, and directly impacting the health of the community, as well as helping children succeed through health-focused efforts. This project requires the engagement of children, parents, and the community, as well as provider support. Effective assessment and treatment of the three focused areas – nutrition and fitness, health protective factors, and mental health – requires the active engagement of children and their families in managing their own situation.

The SCHOOLS effort entails three organizations working together to help the community recognize and face shared public health needs in the neighborhood. MLKCS, SCSSW, and SCHPER will unite to overcome serious, pressing, persistent, and urgent health problems that affect the residents of Mason Square. Interpersonal, social, and community relationships will be built upon and strengthened.