Fairview, Hillsborough, Orange County : an action-oriented community diagnosis : findings and next steps of action
Creators: name: Ng, Amy
name: Jamison, Natasha
name: Maurer, Maureen
name: Trinh, Thang
name: Gertz, Emily
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2002

description: Fairview is a residential community located within the town limits of Hillsborough, North Carolina. Like many communities, Fairview faces a number of challenges. In particular, Fairview battles issues related to drugs, crime, recreation, and education. At the same time, Fairview is a community with some important strengths including a strong sense of community spirit. At the time of this document, the community is anticipating changes, as a new police substation will soon open in the neighborhood. Graduate students, herein referred to as the Fairview Community Diagnosis Team (FCDT), from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health were assigned to complete an Action-Oriented Community Diagnosis (AOCD) in Fairview between November 2001 and May 2002. AOCD is a process designed to impact community change by empowering community members through helping them identify issues that affect their lives (Eng and Blanchard, 1991). These issues are identified by collecting primary data in the form of direct observations, informal communication, in-depth interviews, and focus groups with community members and service providers, and by reviewing secondary data. The graduate students made every effort to accurately represent the voice of the community in this document. While documents exist about the history of Hillsborough, the FCDT could not find secondary documents specific to Fairview. However, the FCDT was able to compile a brief history through interviews with people who have worked or lived in the area for many years. One key point in the community’s history was a tornado that struck Fairview in November of 1992. Despite the devastation, two positive aspects of the tornado were the improvement in housing, since many homes were rebuilt, and an increased sense of unity in the community. Another key point in Fairview’s history was its annexation into the town of Hillsborough in 1988. The next major event in Fairview was the creation of the “Field of Dreams.” In 1999, a community member took the initiative to provide recreational activities for youth by building a baseball field. The FCDT reviewed secondary data from three Orange County Health Department reports, which provided information on the health statistics in Orange County compared to North Carolina and the United States. No health reports were found that focused specifically on the Town of Hillsborough or the Fairview community. Thus, the relationship of the data to the residents of Fairview may only be inferred. With the exception of crime and substance abuse, the information presented in the secondary data review was not reflected in the themes elicited from primary data collection in the Fairview community. Orange County’s data concerning increased crime rates was the only secondary data statistic in precise agreement with community member and service provider perceptions of Fairview. Thirteen themes emerged during conversations with community members and service providers. Below is a brief description of each. Describing each theme independent of the rest takes away from the complexity of the issues. While each does merit specific attention, the FCDT encourages readers of this document to reflect upon their interconnectedness. Community Spirit: This encompassed the residents’ sense of pride, respect and concern for the community’s reputation. Drugs: This theme emerged consistently throughout the course of the interviews. Everyone agreed that drugs was a problem and focused primarily on dealing and using drugs. However, community members emphasized the need for youth drug abuse prevention programs, while service providers were more likely to say that adult treatment programs were needed. Crime: Both the community members and service providers stated that the reputation of Fairview was tarnished by crime, however most agreed that the majority of Fairview residents are good citizens. Police Substation: The police substation, due to open in June 2002 will house representatives from the Hillsborough Police, the Orange County Sheriff Department, the Orange County Public Health Department, the Department of Social Services and other agencies. The building’s opening has been highly anticipated by community members and service providers; however there are mixed feelings about the need for the substation and how it will serve the community. Recreation: Service providers and community members in Fairview both expressed a dire need for more recreational opportunities for children as well as adults; however, they suggested different activities. Educational Opportunities for Youth: Community members and service providers agreed that there needs to be more educational and training programs located in Fairview. Families and Child Discipline: Community members and service providers have different perspectives on how family structure affects the greater community, although both agreed that there is a lack of supervision and discipline for youth. Noise: Many community members commented that noise from cars, motorcycles and loud music affects daily life in Fairview. Service providers did not comment on this theme, possibly because they do not live in the community. Water: Water is expensive in Fairview and all throughout the town of Hillsborough. There were few solutions offered for this problem. Transportation: Lack of transportation impacts education, after-school activities, child care, employment, recreation, and access to health care. Changes are already proposed to increase public transportation in Fairview. Unemployment: Unemployment was a theme mentioned more often by service providers than Fairview residents, but all agreed on the need for job skills training in Fairview. Health Issues: Few specific health problems were mentioned for Fairview, but service providers offered solutions for how to increase access to health care services. Dogs: Compared to other themes, this issue of dog fighting and loose dogs did not get much attention as it appears to be of a smaller magnitude. Yet, service providers said this has been a problem for at least eight years. These themes were identified by an intense analysis of the interview data. The use of Microsoft Excel allowed the team to sort and filter the data for organizing, clustering and categorizing by themes, which helped reveal the complexity and inter-relatedness among the issues. Analysis was completed separately for community member and service provider data to establish a foundation for comparison between insiders and outsiders. The final step in AOCD is to present the findings back to the community in an open forum. The forum is not only an opportunity to share information with community members and service providers, but it is also an opportunity for residents and service providers to come together to learn about each others’ perspectives on Fairview; often for the first time. The forum may also be the launching pad for positive change in the community, as residents and service providers are encouraged to put their ideas into action. At the Fairview Community Forum, small break-out groups identified a contact person and created specific action steps to address the issue they had worked on. Over 70 community members and service providers attended the Forum. This number was more than two times the number anticipated. For the most part, community members and service providers agreed on the major issues facing Fairview. However, level of awareness of these problems and the suggested solutions to these challenges varied between the service providers and the community members. The forum provided the community members and service providers with a venue for learning about their varied perspectives, and it may have been a positive first step in creating understanding about differences and forming productive relationships. The FCDT feels that the action steps identified during the Forum were realistic and appropriate. After analyzing all of the data, the FCDT agrees that tutoring programs, increased communication between the community and the police, publicity and education about the substation, and a survey regarding potential recreational activities will all benefit the Fairview community.