CONCLUSION

The Cedar Riverside partners see many benefits from their collaboration, to the community, their organizations, and themselves personally. They agree that they are in a better position to get funding because of the partnership, citing the CTC and Even Start grants as examples.

Ann Ellison says that she has learned a great deal about the educational and other needs of immigrants and refugees as a result of the collaboration, and this benefits Fairview University Medical Center. More and more of the hospital's employees are immigrants, so the knowledge she has gained from the collaboration is helping the hospital to understand the needs of its employees better. Because of their experience with the partnership, the hospital is now offering English literacy classes on site. Mike Melgaard feels that RPTA now can offer residents so much more, because the partnership enables them to refer residents to employment services and the food shelf at Coyle.

The partners' involvement in the neighborhood has created relationships with the residents that are built on mutual respect and trust. The partnership's efforts to honor the cultures and traditions of the people they serve is a solid foundation on which the partnership can continue to grow.