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Community Voice Mail Comes to New York City by Richelet Jean Community Voice Mail Administrator Coalition for the Homeless Most of us, all our lives, have taken the technology of telephone service for granted. We really couldn’t imagine what our lives would be like if we didn’t have it. Maybe we could find other ways to reach people, but how would they reach us? How difficult would it be to get things done? Even if we could still function, how would others react to us if they knew we didn’t have telephone service? Homeless and unemployed men and women, and others who don’t have normal telephone service, routinely miss chances to have things they need -- including housing, services and jobs that could make them economically self-sufficient -- because they cannot be reached when opportunity calls. If they are ever to get the help they need and solve their own problems, phoneless people need telephone service in order to level the playing field and conduct the essential business of their lives. What CVM Does Community Voice Mail (CVM) provides this missing link between social services case managers and clients, and between clients and the community, enabling them to connect with the services they need and attain mainstream economic independence. CVM provides phoneless people with free access to telephone messages, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week -- messages they would not otherwise receive, at least in a timely fashion, from potential employers, landlords, case managers and providers of critical human services. CVM Gets Results CVM started in Seattle in 1991, and has been replicated in over 20 cities across the USA. Case managers report that clients achieve their goals faster using this program. Agencies have found that, without using this program, 25% of their clients typically reach specific goals -- such as housing or employment -- within 30 days; this figure jumps to 55% when this program is part of the service plan. The originators of CVM have received a major grant from the Harvard Innovation Program and the Ford Foundation to promote its replication. The Coalition for the Homeless has worked with the Seattle group to adapt the program to the needs of New York City and implement it here. CVM in New York City The New York City project was started in February 1995 with 400 voice mail boxes and a capacity of 4,000; there are 2,340 current users. To participate, contact CVM with a brief description of your organization and the populations it serves. The system is used by clients of nonprofit organizations and shelters; by AIDS service agencies for confidential services to poor and low-income individuals and families; and by domestic violence shelters, to help victims maintain safe communications with loved ones and access services. Within minutes on a Touch-Tone telephone, a participating agency case manager can initiate a client on CVM. Each client has a personalized greeting, a 7-digit phone number, and a pass code to retrieve messages. The client leaves the agency with a wallet card that tells how to retrieve messages using a Touch-Tone telephone. Case managers help clients integrate voice mail into their search for services. Contact Richelet Jean at the Coalition for the Homeless, by telephone at (212) 964-5900 Extension 161 or via e-mail at richeletj@yahoo.com.
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Innovations.... Wireless Innovations: New Wireless Technology Is Good News For Nonprofits (October, 2007) METRIX – A Free Database Solution for Nonprofits (March, 2005) The Case For Wireless Networking (October, 2004) Open Source – New Horizons (May, 2004) The Electronic Data Initiative for Nonprofits (August, 2003) Placing Wireless Technologies in Context: Are They Right for Your Agency? (October, 2002) How "Open Source" Can Open Doors for Nonprofits (June, 2002) CUNY Wired! Showcases the Best in Academic Technology (April, 2002) A Handheld Future (June, 2001) Migration to Handhelds: Visiting Nurse Association of Brooklyn (June, 2001) Using Handhelds in the Field: ACCION International Empowers the Self-Employed Poor (June, 2001) Nonprofits Benefit from ePayments Technology (April, 2001) Handheld Computing: Readers Respond (July, 2000) Is Handheld Computing Ready for you? (May, 2000) Community Voice Mail comes to New York (August, 1999) Other Articles of Interest.... How we're using Information Technology to Further our Mission (February, 1999) |
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