Harambee Community Center
future life center for South Linden
By Alex
Steinman
Harambee Christian School Principal
South Linden is a Columbus inner-city community with a crisis of leadership, and God is at work through Urban Concern to change that.
Many factors have contributed to South Linden's problems, including urban decay, the loss of family structures and weak public education.
But there is hope for the future. Through the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and a committed staff, leaders are emerging in South Linden. The Harambee Community Center will build on an already impressive record of accomplishments:
Urban Concern (UC), the recipient of a George H.W. Bush “Point of Light Award,” has been helping the youth and families of South Linden for 15 years. UC serves the community through interpersonal relationships and a variety of programs.
Harambee Christian School has a proven record of academic achievement since opening in 1998. Area public schools achieve an average student performance at the 20th percentile on the Metropolitan Achievement Test, while low-income students at Harambee School achieve above the 50th percentile. And this performance has been increasing steadily since the inception of Harambee.
Other Urban Concern programs include an After School Program, Youth Bible Studies, the Parent Partnership Program and Summer Job Club for teens.
The quality and commitment of our staff and volunteers is evident. For example, eight families have relocated to South Linden from suburban areas and have lived in the community for more than a decade. Hundreds of volunteers serve each year. As a result, Urban Concern has received numerous national and local awards.
Working with the families of South Linden, Urban Concern will continue to change the future of this vital community.
going forward means digging in
In order to sustain and expand our efforts to transform South Linden at a grassroots level, Urban Concern and Harambee Christian School are proposing a $2.9 million capital campaign to provide a multi-use community center and school facility on Bonham Avenue. Xenos has committed $1 million through their capital campaign, and UC will raise the remainder through other sources in the community. Dave Durell and I are leading the team to raise these funds. And Greater Columbus retained Hodge Cramer & Associates to provide professional assistance.
Urban Concern needs a single, expandable base of operation to replace our current inadequate, multiple facilities. The new building will:
- allow for better coordination within the school and between Urban Concern programs;
- enable more efficient delivery of services;
- provide a better, safer learning environment for Harambee students.
With such a facility, we could more effectively prepare students for leadership in South Linden.
getting a single, expandable building
At the present time, Urban Concern programs and the Harambee Christian School are housed in several different buildings, including the primary facility, a renovated laundry mat, and four houses and a duplex. The laundry mat building is undersized and ill-equipped as an educational facility and half of the classrooms have no windows. Being leased, its future availability is uncertain.
Students attend physical education classes at the city recreation center, requiring transportation by car. They must walk to an adjacent house for library classes. The school office and copier are separated from the classrooms in yet another house.
And finally, the fourth- and fifth-grade classrooms are located in still another house several blocks and across Cleveland Avenue from the primary facility. Those classes must be transported to the main building for all-school assemblies and other events. Clearly such an arrangement is most inconvenient and inefficient, negatively impacting academics.
Furthermore, a lack of adequate parking causes congestion and dangerous conditions when parents pick up and drop off children. A permanent home under one roof will greatly enhance the learning environment in which older students can mentor the younger, and the hard-working, committed staff can support one another.
inspiring hope through Harambee Center
The Harambee Community Center would be a multi-use facility, with the primary user being the school. It would additionally provide office space for UC and meeting space for other UC programs, including a large meeting space for adult home groups and student ministries. Such a facility will support the holistic approach of Urban Concern to meet the students' and community's needs.
Finally, Harambee would be a visible life center for South Linden. Its presence would inspire hope and community pride, and enthusiasm about community involvement and leadership. All of the programs housed in this great facility would give the people of South Linden a vision for the future, sparking a spirit of cooperation and volunteerism.