Promising Practices
The Promising Practices database informs professionals and community members about documented approaches to improving community health and quality of life.
The ultimate goal is to support the systematic adoption, implementation, and evaluation of successful programs, practices, and policy changes. The database provides carefully reviewed, documented, and ranked practices that range from good ideas to evidence-based practices.
Learn more about the ranking methodology.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Maternal, Fetal & Infant Health, Children, Teens, Women, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
The goal of the Baby Love program is to improve health outcomes for at-risk mothers and their infants in Rochester, New York, by assisting in identifying potential risks and coordinating pre and postnatal care.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Teens, Adults, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
The goal of the Baltimore Healthy Carryout project was to increase healthy food options at carryout facilities and restaurants in Baltimore's low-income neighborhoods.
The BHC project reached 36.8% more customers during the intervention period than at baseline when comparing intervention carryouts to comparison carryouts. Customers reported purchasing specific foods due to the presence of a photo on the menu board (65.3%) or menu labeling (42.6%).
Filed under Good Idea, Education / Educational Attainment, Children, Teens, Urban
The goal is to guide students from underserved communities towards careers in healthcare, simultaneously fulfilling workforce needs.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Children, Teens, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban
To provide academic, vocational, recreational and life skills for at risk youth ages 12-21 in the Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Cancer, Adults, Women, Men, Older Adults, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The mission of the Be a Blue Buddy campaign is to educate the community about colorectal cancer, to raise awareness about the importance of screening and early detection, to give hope to newly diagnosed patients, and to save lives.
Be a Blue Buddy has helped raise awareness and create a dialogue for colorectal cancer. Grace De La Rosa began Be a Blue Buddy in 2014 and has reached several thousand people in her community and nationwide.
Filed under Good Idea, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Teens, Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The mission of Beats & Rhymes is to provide schools and community centers with the knowledge and resources they need to implement their own successful program, and subsequent music group.
Beats & Rhymes teaches youth music-making skills through implementation in various Minneapolis after-school programs.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Family Planning, Teens, Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The goals of this intervention include: increasing information and skills to make sound choices, increasing abstinence, and eliminating or reducing sex risk behaviors.
Among teens who participated, there was a decrease in sexual activity compared to those who did not participate in the program. Also among participants, there was an increase in sexual intercourse occasions that were condom-protected.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children, Families, Rural
The BEE Program seeks to strengthen parents' abilities to provide the physical and emotional support necessary for children's healthy growth and development by giving them otherwise unavailable access to parenting and early childhood education.
Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use
The goal of Behavioral Couples Therapy for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse is to improve success rates for treatment of alcoholism and drug abuse by involving intimate partners in the treatment process.
Numerous studies of the program have shown positive outcomes in five areas: substance abuse, quality of relationship with partner, treatment compliance, intimate partner violence, and children's psychosocial functioning. BCT clients also reported more relationship satisfaction than non-participants.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Energy & Sustainability, Families
Currently, the average U.S. family spends nearly $1,300 a year on energy bills, with much of that energy being wasted due to air leaks, inefficient appliances, and a general lack of attention to this important issue. The Community Associations Institute (CAI) and the Department of Energy (DOE) are dedicated to educating the community association industry--and the significant portion of the U.S. population it represents--on the many ways to increase the energy efficiency of their homes, and thereby reduce both energy consumption and costs.