Measuring the Shared Value of Anchor Community Engagement

Measuring the Shared Value of Anchor Community Engagement

Anchor institutions play a significant role in the local economy due to purchasing power, real estate investments, employment and a long-term interest in seeing their local communities thrive. Hospitals and universities are obvious community anchors and some, such as the University of Pennsylvania, have initiated groundbreaking community development strategies.

However, other organizations, such as corporations and sports teams, may not embrace their anchor status or know how to leverage their strengths for the mutual benefit of their organization and their community. Understanding and measuring the shared value of anchor strategies—the positive impact on the community and the positive returns to the anchor—may strengthen the investment these organizations make in their communities. Join the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) for a What Works Webinar to discuss best practice approaches for measuring the impact of anchor institutions. Gain actionable insights that will include:

• How a community and an anchor institution can benefit from shared value strategies
• How shared value anchor strategies differ from corporate social responsibility
• Useful metrics for measuring community impact
• Metrics for analyzing the return to anchors
• The benefits and challenges associated with collecting and publicizing impact data

• Kim Zeuli, Senior Vice President and Director of Research and Advisory Practice, ICIC
• Ted Howard, Founder and Executive Director, The Democracy Collaborative
• Anthony Sorrentino, Executive Director, Office of the Executive Vice President, University of Pennsylvania

The webinar will take place Thursday, June 5th at 1:00-2:00 p.m. ET.

College Provides $750,000 to Fight Blight at Its Doorstep

Plenty of urban colleges struggle with neighborhood blight, and Providence College is among them. Situated on 105 acres overlooking Providence, RI, the college borders Smith Hill, where abandoned homes reduce property values, attract squatters, and invite crime.

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