Transforming Communities Count

The Communities Count partnership is transforming development, production, and dissemination of the Communities Count Report to a dynamic web-based resource with enhanced potential for interactive use by governments, funders, agencies, and community-based organizations that work to improve the lives of residents throughout King County.  Our new strategy includes providing frequent data updates, developing a social media presence, adding more timely and relevant indicators, and cultivating a rich web of partnerships. Each of these strategies not only makes the data more useful, but also democratizes data to support community-driven solutions.

The 2011 qualitative study will examine the often enduring impacts of recession on economically vulnerable families raising young children (birth to 3 years).  We will extract common themes from interviews, conducted in multiple languages, with 30-40 lower-income families across King County, plus interviews with several service providers.  We will pair these qualitative data with quantitative findings on Communities Count indicators in hopes of influencing policy to ensure a healthy start in life for all children.