From left: Tim Kenyon, Vice-President, Research, Brock University, Jim Bradley, MPP and Regional Chairman Alan Caslin.
The Niagara Region and Brock University have formed a partnership to evaluate the impact of the Niagara Prosperity Initiative (NPI) on Niagara’s communities. Now in its 10th year, the NPI provides $1.5 million annually to support poverty reduction and prevention activities throughout the region.
The evaluation project is supported by $470,000 in funding delivered through the Government of Ontario’s Local Poverty Reduction Fund (LPRF). The grant, administered by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, is helping Niagara Region to support those in need by identifying the effect of the NPI over the last decade.
The NPI evaluation project will examine more than 330 projects that have received funding over the last 10 years. The NPI has supplied funding to 84 different agencies since 2008, with a particular focus on women, single parents and their children, youth, people with disabilities, newcomers, indigenous people and seniors.
“The Niagara Prosperity Initiative is a unique Regional program that has supplied funding for hundreds of community programs, touching the lives of more than one out of five residents. Evaluation of all our programs, including the prosperity initiative, is an important part of our mandate as we’re always looking for ways to enhance performance and deliver the highest value for our residents. We’re proud of what the NPI has accomplished over the past decade and look forward to our new partnership with Brock University,” said Alan Caslin, Regional Chair.
Through this partnership, Brock University’s evaluation team will examine how the NPI has addressed poverty in Niagara, possible approaches to enhance the initiative and future program evaluation techniques. Evaluation is a critical component of any strategy.
The data collected will contribute to a body of knowledge that will support poverty reduction programs across the province.
“I am pleased that the Niagara Region and Brock University are partnering together to evaluate the success of the Niagara Prosperity Initiative in addressing the issue of poverty in Niagara. This assessment will provide valuable information to better support those still struggling with poverty in our community,” said Jim Bradley, MPP, St. Catharines.
Kevin has spent over two decades as a public relations professional in a variety of sectors including professional sports, the arts, industry and healthcare. After tiring of the daily commute to Toronto he returned to Niagara and launched The Niagara Independent, an online news source published twice weekly.
He is a graduate of Brock University, Niagara College and the Richard Ivey School of Business. He was named one of Niagara’s 40 Under Forty in 2005.
Kevin is most proud of his twin daughters. He is also a triathlete and four-time Ironman finisher.
