The work of Miami SPEC is significantly funded by a grant from The Children's Trust, as described in the news article below.

As part of our work we consult with Miami-area human services organizations that seek to evaluate their long-standing norms and habits as part of a process of becoming more effective agents of change.

A powerpoint presentation describes our work in more detail.

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University of Miami School of Education
Receives a Grant from
The Children's Trust

University of Miami News, January 22, 2007

Coral Gables, FL.- The University of Miami School of Education has received a $610,671 grant from The Children's Trust to fund a project called Miami Specs: Learning by Changing and Doing. SPEC stands for Strength, Prevention, Empowerment, Community Change.  

The three-year award will allow the school to partner with three local human services organizations to help them change their culture and improve the way they approach their work. These organizations, the Health Foundation of South Florida, the Early Leaning Coalition, and the Human Services Coalition, provide much needed services to children and families in our underserved communities.

"This program has the potential to change organizations for the better," said Dean Isaac Prilleltensky, who will be the Principal Investigator of SPECS. "It allows each human services organization to identify its strengths and be proactive instead of reactive."   

The premise behind SPEC's philosophy is that existing models for helping children and families are inadequate and can be improved. For many years, human service agencies have reacted to problems and concentrated on deficits instead of highlighting the positive resources found both within and outside of their organizations. SPEC aims to create a new model, said Marilyn Neff, associate dean at the School of Education.

"We would encourage these organizations to be more focused on the strengths of clients," said Neff. "We will give them the tools to identify organizational programs and strategies that keep certain issues from becoming critical time consuming problems."

Based on a model that Dean Prilleltensky launched in Nashville, Tennessee, the SPECS research project will have University of Miami educators working closely with members of the participating organizations in assessing their needs and then helping them to implement the desired changes.

Participants from the partner organizations will come to classes at the University of Miami and will act as change agents within their organization, said Neff. "We are not imposing a design on top of them," said Neff. "Rather we are working with their differences and strengths to create a more effective organization."

Miami SPEC Newsletter: Summer, 2010