About CRN

The Community Resource Network (CRN) is an organization that shares a belief that both access to information and the tools and support resources to use and understand it are fundamental components of a community improvement agenda. Our objective is to become a recognized data resource for neighborhood groups and organizations across the community working on making conditions in Louisville better.  This includes neighborhood residents, government policy makers, non-profit organizations, and university researchers.  We expect the results of our work to influence pubic debate, build public will, and advance policies on issues of importance to neighborhood residents. 

Vision

Community Resource Network (CRN) operates on the premise that data provides insight about communities, neighborhoods, the regional workforce, families, and children that is critical to the social and economic development of Louisville Metro and the region. To fulfill this need the community requires an efficient vehicle for access and distribution of data for policy and program planning in the public, non-profit, and private sectors.

Timely access to accurate data will improve the lives of residents, program design and service delivery strategies, community planning and decision making.  Ready access to sound data on a timely and consistent basis with strong safeguards for integrity and confidentiality will add demonstrable value to community decisions.

At a time when community data is increasing in volume, the level of effort required to identify sources, collect, aggregate, and analyze data has grown complex and expensive. Data are expensive, and the financial resources to acquire data are limited. Staff with the analytical skills needed to convert data into useful information is also limited, constraining the community’s overall capacity to utilize data in the fragmented system that currently exists. 

History

The idea for Community Resource Network Data Center began with informal conversations and meetings in 1999 and 2000 between representatives from a number of governmental and non-profit organizations, all of whom recognized the value of creating an integrated community data center to make data available to a variety of users. In July 2000, an informal partnership was formed. The group met on a regular basis through the rest of 2000, and determined that in addition to the collection of data, resident access and capacity building were necessary components of such an undertaking.

The Community Data Partnership (CDP), as the group named itself, was awarded a planning grant from the Annie E. Casey Foundation in January 2001, and began an intensive, facilitated planning process, which included regular meetings of the expanding group of partners, a planning sessions with an expert from the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership/Urban Institute, and bi-weekly meetings of the volunteer Development Team, which worked through some of the more difficult aspects of the planning process.

 Based on that work, the CDP developed a Business and Operational Plan for a Community Data Center that set forth a mission, program components, and principles, identified stakeholders and resources, determined the geographic and organizational location for the Data Center, set a budget, and addressed other key issues. The business plan became the basis of an application to Annie E. Casey Foundation for an implementation grant, which was approved in September 2001.

 The CDP determined to place the Data Center within an existing organization, the Community Resource Network (CRN), an eleven year old consortium of non-profits and government agencies which catalogs and maintains a database and directory of social services available in the community primarily used by social services providers for Information and Referral purposes. The Metro United Way is the fiscal agent for the CRN. Initially, the Operating Committee of the CRN, and the Leadership Committee of the Data Center were two separate bodies, with many shared members. In December 2001, the two governing committees decided to merge, to provide the Community Resource Network, encompassing both the I&R and Data Center functions, with a single governing body. 

 

 

Priciples

The Community Resource will adhere to the following principles:

  • Principle 1. The primary purpose of CRN is to assist distressed communities. It will strive to work at all levels (e.g. neighborhood, organization, city, county, and state).
  • Principle 2. The value of information is as a tool for positive change- not as an end unto itself.  CRN  must be seen as a reliable, responsible, and fair data source.
  • Principle 3. CRN should promote a continuous learning process and maintain an ongoing dialogue with data users and holders. Building neighborhood capacity to obtain and use data is critical to this vision.
  • Principle 4. Credibility is critical to the success of the CRN.
  • Principle 5. Every effort should be made to ensure that both data and the uses to which it is applied are honest, open, and reliable. The focus should be on information, not on policy.
  • Principle 6 Holders of public data should share the data they have.
  • Principle 7. CRN will work to include community members in all levels of planning, review, and implementation of its work, reflective of the racial, class, cultural and gender diversity of our City.
  • Principle 8. CRN will work in a manner that encourages collaboration, and strengthens existing and new efforts by other entities and organizations to improve the lives of people in meaningful ways. 

 Ethics

The guiding principle behind the Community Resource Network is a humanistic regard for the privacy of individuals and families. The smallest geographic unit normally reported by this project will be block groups. Should Staff encounter a situation where they must balance privacy against the need for data, the issue shall be resolved by safeguarding the privacy of the individual or family.

  • CRN will not release, or give access to, identifying data (e.g., name, address, identify of relatives, social security number, employer, school) for any reason.
  • Ownership of all data of an identifying or sensitive nature will remain with the contributing entity.
  • The Project Manager will delete all identifying data from the system upon receipt of a written request from the entity owning the data.
  • Staff will not remove or transfer identifying data without the express permission of the contributing entity.
  • The Project Manager will review all reports, maps, tables, charts, and files prior to release to ensure that they contain nothing inappropriate or confidential.
  • The Project Manager will execute data sharing agreements with all data contributors outlining the conditions of use.
  • The Project Manager will enact whatever measures are necessary to comply with any additional or special conditions specified by a data contributor.
  • When using public and semi-public data of an identifying nature (e.g., birth and death records, court and police records), Staff shall treat the information the same as confidential data to ensure the privacy of family members, neighbors and others. (e.g., shall report no findings below the block group level).
  • Tables, maps, files or documents containing addresses that refer to individuals or families - living or deceased - shall never be released.