SASSA Cultural Heritage and Community Identity Grant
The Somali community in Rochester, MN, is one of the most connected cultural groups in the region.
Our project hopes to untangle the rich culture that is often hidden from the public sphere in Rochester,
Unity begins with knowing your neighbors. MN. Through the Humanities Center's Cultural Grant, we will
implement a program to inform and teach our fellow neighbors about the Somali culture. Our platform will be based on speakers, multimedia, tv
programming, and print.
2022-2023 Cultural Heritage and Community Identity Grants - Spring 2022
Sassa plans to use electronics and paper methods to survey guests before and after the events. We will also use the data to measure metrics on the Number of people who attended. In addition, we plan to do data analyses to help improve our process.
The goals of the project are as such:
Inputs
i. Board direction
ii. Staff training
iii. Partner Organizations
iv. Grant Funding
v. External Educational Resources (speakers)
c. Activities
i. Informational Sessions/Conferences
ii. Community Education
iii.
v. Peer Support Instruction
v. City/County involvement
vi. Pre- and Post-metrics to conclude and compare data
d. Outputs
i. Represent data that can analyze (descriptive statistics?)
ii. Number of youth who attend
iii. Number of training offered
iv. Number of community contacts
v. Number of immigrants who increase understanding of Somali culture
vi. Number of diverse Professionals (Nurse, Lab Tech?) who present
Outcomes
1. Outcome 1: To enhance the understating of the Somali culture and its importance to the community.
2. Outcome 2: To steer the direction of knowledge towards a central source through our webpage.
3. Outcome 3: To give Somali immigrants the tools and resources to convey their culture meaningfully.
4. Outcome 4: To prevent cultural misunderstandings resulting in violent groups and property damage.
5. Outcome 5: To bridge cultural and traditional customs with the opportunities available in the U.S. A
6. Outcome 6: To provide a survey to see how neighbors perceive Somali culture
SASSA has made significant progress toward our outcomes and goals. We are also on track to meeting the rest of the goals. We boosted the awareness of Somali culture and involved other Minnesotans to help foster an understanding of Somali heritage and culture. Our events, found on the attached youtube link, allowed us to host and initiate theatrical (plays, showcases, and presentations) for other Minnesotans who want to learn about their Somali neighbors. The event was held in February and was attended by:
1. Mayor Kim Norton,
2. Two state senators
3. Three state representatives
4. Rochester Police Department
5. Mayo Clinic Representatives
6. Cambodian, Spanish communities, and others
7. Additional members of the communities
The outcome of the event was positive and people were able to ask several questions. ; SASSA was able to reach its goals with inputs from the board, partner organizations, and staff training to deliver education and understanding of heritage and culture. Our activities included information sessions, discussions, and public events to reach the larger community to learn about Somali culture. In addition to our events, we had direct collaboration with city and county officials and many esteemed leaders attended our event. This is important as it sets the tone for the impact of these events. As part of our outcomes, SASSA was able to enhance the understating of Somali culture and its importance to the community. We were able to steer the direction of knowledge towards a central source through our webpage. We were able to provide the tools and resources to convey the culture of Somali immigrants meaningfully. Our educational events were able to prevent cultural misunderstandings and bridge cultural/traditional customs with the opportunities available in the States.
Our neighbors were able to perceive Somali culture at its best and had the opportunity to ask questions.
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OMAR DAHIR - VICE CHAIRMayo Clinic Employee and Student at RCTC AHMED ADEN - SECRETARYFederal Interpreter
ABDISALAN SABRIE - BOARD MEMBEROwner of Sun Home Health Care INC, Rochester (Also SRO's Director of Small Business Program)
FATUMA OMAR - BOARD MEMBERRochester Business Owner, Interpreter for Mayo Clinic for 10+ years. (Also SRO's Director of Woman Empowerment Program)
YAHYE AHMED - BOARD MEMBER Rochester Public Schools Par-legalABDIRASHID TURE - BOARD MEMBERFundraiser for SRO Local Scholar
DR. SHAFICI MOHAMED - BOARD MEMBER Medical Doctor at Mayo ClinicASHA AFRAH - BOARD MEMBERMinneapolis Businesswoman and Community Activist
MOHAMUD AHMED - BOARD MEMBERNurse at Mayo Clinic
ABDUL-KADIR -ADAM -Board Member Interpreter for St. Paul Public Schools