What are the best ways to contact low-literacy and limited-English-proficiency populations?

An individual who is low literate and/or limited English proficient often needs support services that others with better reading, writing, and comprehension skills in English may not need. Frequently, these services are federally funded; i.e., through USDA's Nutrition Assistance Program (including Food Stamps for groceries) or HUD's Housing Choice Vouchers (commonly known as Section 8 vouchers) for housing. Other times, a person's immigration status requires interaction with government agencies, attorneys, and ministerial associations. New citizens may seek help from ethnic cultural associations, elected officials, and faith-based organizations. Such programs are often identified by word of mouth.

Immigrants often depend on ethnic or mainstream radio and television for information because they may not read or cannot afford "fee for services." Such media and free ethnic newspapers provide excellent ways to give and receive information about a community. Radio and television call-in shows provide opportunities to exchange ideas or information via two-way communication.

Organizations and municipalities often prepare a calendar of events that identify happenings where people gather and project information can be dispersed. Piggybacking on a scheduled event takes advantage of the public already in attendance. Being a part of a civic, social, educational, or sporting event provides an opportunity to interact with people in a situation where they are comfortable and feel safe. It also provides an opportunity to leverage the trust that an organization may have already established with their community. While elected officials and organizational leaders are appropriate places to start getting information about a community, building relationships with community insiders can provide a more day-to-day picture of the community. School principals, bus drivers, and ESL Coordinators are especially helpful.

Watercolored photo of people sitting in a living room setting discussing a project.

Miami-Dade County (FL) MPO staff appeared on local Haitian television to discuss projects.

Students can be conduits to their parents and sources of information about when, where, and what time meetings could be held. They can also serve as beta-testers for surveys, newsletters, presentations, and displays.

Those with limited funds or who are just starting off in a new place often use Laundromats, discount stores like Wal-Mart, and grocery stores that accept Food Stamps and sell ethnic foods. They often depend on faith-based organizations for clothes, kitchenware, and furniture.

Each community has places where its members meet and interact. Often locating congregational places is as simple as driving through the community. Being in the community at various times of the day and night, and on weekdays and weekends is important because activities and varying travel patterns can turn an empty-area-during-the-week into a packed place on a weekend.

Watercolored photo of a woman pushing a shopping cart while receiving project information from a project staff member.

Wal-Mart allowed Tennessee DOT's consultant staff to distribute project information and conduct interviews within a store.

Explore websites, national publications, and local newspapers

Federal websites for programs targeted to low-income populations provide information about where these populations may live and shop. National publications that target minority populations provide information on the location of offices of minority health, radio stations, newspapers, faith-based organizations, cultural groups, and political leaders. These provide information about where and how information can be disseminated and collected, and where meetings might be held. Even the Yellow Pages and local newspapers can provide insight into communities and their representatives.

...Food Stamp program State field-office contacts

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service field office website (http://www.fns.usda.gov/cga/Contacts/FieldOffices/) identifies each State's main field-office address, and phone and fax numbers. Each State's Officer in Charge administers the agency's Food Stamp program and can provide a list of businesses that accept Food Stamps, by zip code or county, with their address, phone number, type of business, and if they are open 24 hours or not. The Officer in Charge can also identify the period when the Electronic Benefits Transfer takes place in that State. Each State has the authority to designate its own period. During this time period, the U.S. Department of Agriculture electronically transfers benefits to each recipient's Food Stamp credit card, which is the most likely time for recipients to shop.

Watercolored photo of shoppers paying for purchases at a grocery store.

Cashiers at a grocery store in Maysville, NC, placed project newsletters in each grocery bag.

...U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development websites (http://egis.hud.gov/egis and http://www.hud.gov/apps/section8/index.cfm) provide information on Public and Indian Housing. The first website, under "Map Your Community," provides thematic maps and detailed tabular information on multi-family complexes that accept Housing Choice Vouchers, on the elderly/disabled, and on the Internal Revenue Service Low-Income Housing Tax-Credit properties. The tabular information provides the property names, addresses, number of units, and number of Section 8 units. The second website provides a list by county, city, and zip code of all subsidized apartments; for example, those accepting Section 8 vouchers. It also provides a name and address for each complex, the complex manager's phone number, and the type of complex (elderly, disabled, or family). Contact the complex manager about posting project information on the bulletin board and holding a meeting in the clubhouse. Using facilities in the complex eliminates the need for personal transportation, and makes it convenient and safe for residents to attend meetings.

...Administration on Aging

The Administration on Aging website (http://www.aoa.gov) includes an eldercare locator that provides the name and location of the local agency on aging by State, county, and/or city of organizations. These local agencies can provide more detailed information on their individual websites; information such as, senior-daycare facilities, housing and long-term-care facilities, and senior centers as well as scheduled events that could offer "piggyback" opportunities. Often these centers have their own buses that take their people to meetings.

Watercolored photo of people sitting and standing and talking with each other.

Utah DOT staff visited a senior center to conduct interviews.

Shepherd's Centers, a national network of interfaith community-based organizations provides social services and learning opportunities. Their website (http://www.shepherdcenters.org) provides location and contact information.

...targeted national publications

There are several national publications that target selected populations. These include, but are not limited to, the African American Yearbook, the Hispanic Yearbook, and the People of Color Environmental Groups. The African American Yearbook is available in paper form and its data online via "Search the Database" at http://africanamericanyearbook.com. It provides information about:

African American members of the U.S. Congress, State Representatives and Senators, National Black Caucus of State Legislators, and Mayors.
African American conventions and events.
Federal and State offices of minority health within each State.
Historically Black colleges and universities, African American organizations, publications, radio stations, and faith-based organizations by city within each State.

The Hispanic Yearbook is available in paper form and its data online via "Search the Database" at http://hispanicyearbook.com. It provides information in English and Spanish about:

Hispanics in the Nation's and States' legislative branches.
Hispanic conventions and events.
Federal and State offices of minority health within each State.
Hispanic organizations, publications, television stations, radio stations, and faith-based organizations by city within each State.
Hispanic-serving institutions (those colleges and universities where Hispanics constitute 25 percent of the total enrollment).

The People of Color Environmental Groups is available in paper form by ordering on the website (http://www.mott.org) under "Publications, browse" and "Special Publications" or for download online at http://www.ejrc.cau.edu/poc2000.htm. It provides information about environmental groups at the State and city level.

...local agencies, organizations, and groups

There are often many local agencies, organizations, and groups that have inroads to all levels of a community. Some of these include:

The county and/or city in which the project is located can provide a calendar of local events, fairs, and festivals.
The Chamber of Commerce can provide a list of its members who represent selected populations.
Colleges or universities can provide the phone number of their international student association.
The Public Information Officer at a military base can provide the name and phone number of ethnic associations.

Contact information for many of these local agencies, organizations, and groups can be found in the following places:

The Yellow Pages can provide the phone number and address of ministerial associations, faith-based organizations that have non-English services, ethnic restaurants and grocers, and attorneys that provide immigration, green card, and visa services.
Internet search engines can provide lists by typing in key words; such as, Hispanic or other group, plus the city or county of interest, plus organizations.
The "Black Churches" website (http://www.theblackchurchpage.com) includes a church locator that provides the names, addresses, and phone numbers of African American churches; and their minister's name and telephone number by State and city.
The National Congress of American Indians website (http://www.ncai.org) includes tribal governments by area of the United States, tribe, representative, and contact information; tribal organizations by website and telephone number; Federal government contacts by website and telephone number; and associated organizations by website.
This website (http://www.mobilehomeparkstore.com/list.htm) can provide a list of manufactured-home communities by State and city.

...local and regional newspapers

Reading the local and regional newspapers online provides a convenient and inexpensive way to monitor a project area. Copies of non-online newspapers can be obtained during site visits, and subscriptions can be placed for these newspapers. Through these news sources, a variety of local information can be gleaned about hot topics, local leaders, cultural activities, upcoming sports and special events, shopping locations, letters to the editor, project opinions, and multi-language services at faith-based organizations.

Talk to local officials and community insiders

While most projects begin with visits to formal leaders, such as elected or appointed officials, it is just as important to visit community insiders who have daily contact with the public. Information from these individuals should be verified for accuracy and used discretely to protect residents' privacy.

...elementary school principals

In Jones County, NC, principals at the two elementary schools within the project area said that a high percentage of their students were eligible for the Free and Reduced Price Meal programs and 35 to 40 percent of the students' parents could not read or write. This discovery changed the way information was presented and collected - from sole reliance on written materials to the addition of one-on-one oral interviews.

...English as a Second Language coordinators

Through a Cumming, GA, local school's English as a Second Language Coordinator, the Hispanic population was identified. This primarily Mexican population included many illegal aliens, but this was not an issue with the school staff since a high level of trust had been forged between the parents and the staff. Because members of the Hispanic community could be impacted by a transportation project, the Georgia DOT asked if they could "piggyback" on one of the school's regularly scheduled meetings and address the parents. The Georgia DOT also asked the ESL Coordinator to assist as an interpreter in addition to providing native Spanish speakers familiar with transportation and its language set. The trust between the school staff and the parents was evidenced by the question and answer exchanges. Parents were comfortable saying "I own my trailer. What will happen to me? I am not legal." Reaching these residents and being able to discuss an array of project issues with them was possible because of several factors, including:

The parents' level of interest in their children's education.
The level of trust that existed between the parents and the school's staff.
The school staff's willingness to allow the DOT to leverage this trust and address the parents.
The utilization of a location where the parents felt safe, and at a time convenient for them.
The inclusion of the ESL Coordinator and other native-Spanish speakers.
The minimization of the parents' time by using one meeting to accomplish two purposes.

Watercolored photo of woman behind desk conversing with another woman seated in front of the desk.

A school principal discussed the number of students eligible for the Free and Reduced Price Meal programs.

...school bus drivers

While driving through a project area in Taylor County, KY, several school buses were sighted. The bus drivers' names and contact information were obtained through the County school system and they were contacted by telephone about the families along their routes. They were able to identify the race, ethnicity, and size of each household. In addition, they knew if the households were multigenerational, the approximate ages of those in the households, if any household members had physical disabilities or had special needs, and how long the residents had lived in their homes. Many of the older bus drivers who were long-term area residents knew family histories and were able to identify where members of the same family lived. This information was helpful in understanding the fabric of the community and the co-dependences that existed between households.

Watercolored photo of woman driving a bus.

A bus driver shared information about those living along her route.

Form alliances with existing organizations Forming alliances with existing organizations eliminates starting from scratch and provides an opportunity to leverage trust that these organizations have already established in their communities. These organizations can be helpful in identifying important individuals, being an intermediary between other organizations, and acting as a cosponsor for the project. In addition, these organizations can help distribute project information through their own membership.

...bus drivers' unions

In Cincinnati, OH, interviewers rode the buses. They talked to riders and completed questionnaires with them while on the buses. Both the bus drivers and their union were involved in the process and allowed "tear-off" sheets with meeting times and places to be hung on the fare box. The bus drivers also assisted by telling their riders about the importance of planned meetings in terms of improving service, and often attended the meetings themselves.

...Native American tribal organizations

In Alaska, the Association of Village Presidents is an important liaison to the State's 287 federally recognized tribes. This group provides an understanding of the culture, knows the best times for meetings, and identifies the importance of oral communications. This group has led public involvement, set up meetings, brought people to the meetings, and provided interpreters where necessary.

A watercolored phot of a group of people in a presentation setting with one person standing in front of them addressing them.

An Inupiat interpreter facilitates a public-involvement meeting for Alaska DOT.

...health-care and faith-based organizations

Going through health-care organizations and personnel proved to be another successful way of accessing migrant farm workers, as did using faith-based organizations that provided them with housing, clothing, and food. These organizations served as intermediaries, delivering messages between the agency and the farm workers. This was important because the farm workers generally were unable to attend meetings during the day. They did not have "sick" or "vacation" days and could not take time off from work to attend meetings without fear of losing their jobs. This population had a great deal of fear in meeting with any "official" organization that was associated with the Federal or State government. By utilizing faith-based, health-care, and legal-aid workers to assist in meeting with migrant workers, a level of trust was developed. In several instances, the legal-aid workers actually conducted the interviews and reported the results back to the project consultants. In addition, migrant-worker fairs were used to pass out information in Spanish and English to this population.

...community-based organizations

At California DOT, a variety of community-based organizations were retained to help organize community meetings. Each of these organizations was familiar with their target communities and had connections within the communities that were respected by others. This respect chain opened many doors that might have been difficult to open otherwise. The community-based organizations reviewed all information that would be sent to the communities to determine its effectiveness, and disseminated information in writing and verbally through their community networks.

Watercolored photo of two men sitting in a church pew conversing.

Faith-based organizations often assist in meeting hard-to-reach populations.

Contents