Woodlawn Foundation serves as a catalyst and facilitator for the transformation and revitalization of Woodlawn in Birmingham, Alabama, into a vibrant and sustainable community in which its residents have an opportunity to thrive.
The Vision of the Woodlawn Foundation is to grow a safe and healthy community where children learn and play, families live in quality housing, parents work in stable jobs, businesses thrive and everyone contributes to the growth of Greater Birmingham.
In 2010, Mike and Gillian Goodrich started Woodlawn Foundation, the lead organization or “community quarterback” of Woodlawn United – a comprehensive collaboration of partners committed to breaking the cycle of poverty in Woodlawn.
By working with residents and local stakeholders in the community, Woodlawn Foundation identifies needs within the neighborhood and leverages resources to fill those gaps with high quality services and programs.
WHAT WE BELIEVE IN
Integrity: Transparency in our work and mission, honesty and trustworthiness.
Equity: We embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion and use this as the basis of our decision making.
Passion: We are energized by our work and are fully immersed in our community and residents.
Humanity: By taking care of one another, we consistently strive to make Woodlawn the best it can be for ourselves and its residents.
Creativity: We seek new ways to be more effective in furthering our mission to the
greater good of our community.
THE FOUNDATION followsA HOLISTIC APPROACH TO COMMUNITY REVITALIZATION
The Purpose Built Communities model for holistic community revitalization was crafted from the successful transformation of the East Lake community in Atlanta, Georgia, in the mid-1990’s. Led by local real estate developer and philanthropist Tom Cousins, Atlanta Housing Authority President and CEO Renee Glover, local resident Eva Davis and key business leaders, the partnership took the community from a poverty-stricken, crime-ridden public housing development into a thriving community with quality mixed-income housing, a top-rated school, 95% reduction in crime rates and substantial investments in commercial and residential real estate.
By utilizing lessons learned through the East Lake transformation via high quality, mixed-income housing, cradle-to-college education pipeline and community wellness programs, Purpose Built Communities is helping to make a positive impact in some the country’s most challenging neighborhoods through organizations such as Woodlawn Foundation. To date, their Network Members lead comprehensive redevelopment initiatives in more than eighteen communities across the country.
Click HERE to learn more about Purpose Built Communities
In the Spring of 2013, several partners joined Woodlawn Foundation in a collaborative effort to create a model school feeder pattern …
Providing high quality, mixed-income and single family housing options to Woodlawn residents has been the primary real estate strategy for Woodlawn Foundation since its inception …
We believe community wellness is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being …
Managers of Community Partners (MCP)
Woodlawn Foundation provided a Manager of Community Partners (MCP) in each of the five schools in the Woodlawn network through the 2018-2019 school year whose sole purpose is to connect families to support services and coordinate partners in six areas: youth development, health, mental health, family support, education and community engagement. These school-level quarterbacks served as front line support for parents at each school.
Early College
Early College gives Woodlawn High students the opportunity to earn up to 60 hours of college credit in high school. Early College is a partnership between Birmingham City Schools, University of Alabama-Birmingham, and Jefferson State Community College that gives Woodlawn High students the opportunity to earn up to 60 hours of college credit in high school. To date, Woodlawn High School students have earned more than 1100 college hours through Early College.
Professional Development
Greater Birmingham Math Partnership (GBMP) and WIN are working together to assist teachers in using inquiry-based instruction to increase student achievement. Teachers from Avondale and Oliver Elementary Schools began working with GBMP during the summer of 2017 when teachers took a 4-day inquiry-based mathematics course on “Equations and Expressions” which then modeled the instruction that teachers would implement with their students. During this school year, teachers have been participating in follow-up monthly Professional Learning Community meetings to plan and then observe in-the moment lessons with WIN students. GBMP’s research since 2004 has shown that when teachers implement inquiry-based curriculum, student achievement increases.
Academic Achievement
Our collaborative work led to:
We believe community wellness is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. In order to cultivate the healthy and safe neighborhood that Woodlawn’s citizens deserve, we are working with residents and partners to provide access to health services, wellness programs in schools, more green space, walking trails, healthy food, quality retail amenities, and more.