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Research Design

This research focused around the organization and execution of three different community
events. Each event had a different subject and theme, but they were all driven by the same
mission to encourage social capital and to document the benefits of those youth and adults who
attend. In doing so, we always considered my original research question: what happens when
we create events where youth and adults have opportunities to connect in meaningful
ways, share passions and learn from each other? Each community event was designed to
inspire participation and develop social capital amongst our participants. In doing so, we
examined if our participants made new connections at our events and how they experienced
those social interactions. Additionally, we considered our own design and constantly re-
evaluated how we can improve our program.

Before I explain the research methods and instruments, let me first describe the three events at
the center of this research. Each event serve as the primary focus of the findings sections and
will be used to draw the broader conclusions found at the end of the research.

1. Community Music Exchange- Participants brought songs from their favorite albums to
the event and came prepared to talk about the meaning behind their selection. Through
three different sharing options, participants shared their songs with their neighbors. The
songs were used to break the proverbial ice (always awkward regardless of context) and
allow for participants to use the stories behind their favorite albums as a vehicle to
connect.

2. Trade School- Organized to be an opportunity for skill sharing within the community,
we transformed our school site into a community classroom, where skilled teachers sign
up to teach a class on a subject they consider valuable. From the practical (Motorcycle
Maintanance) to the artistic (Book Binding 101), our Trade School included a diverse set
of offerings meant to best represent community interest.

3. High Tech Chula Vista Village- At The Table- During my time with the 7th grade
powerhouse team, Edrick Macalaguim and Kyle Linnik, we rennovated a school garden
for the entire campus. Hoping to use the garden to encourage healthy eating and local
food both for the students and the larger CV community, we hosted a community dinner,
At The Table. Led by our student partners, we wanted to use food and conversation to
bring members of the village community together to not just experience the fruits
of our students labor, but to also talk about the strengths and needs of the Chula
Vista community.

Along with serving as a thorough documentation of those events, this research also intends to
capture common threads, examine the effective details, and provide answers on how we can
create positives spaces and experiences that will reinforce personal ties among
community members and encourage future social participation.

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To do so, I used three instruments for data collection to best analyze and investigate the value,
benefits, and outcomes of these upstart programs. Below is a discussion of these research
methods, as they were applied to each event.

At the top, we administered detailed surveys to capture the overall mood and energy of the
event from all the participants. From there, we collected more specific and personalized
perspectives through recorded interviews with a pre-selected focus group consisting of
community members of all ages and backgrounds. And finally, the last instrument included my
own personal observations in the planning and execution of each event.

Survey Methods

Surveys were used to capture a broad sense of each event and its general value. The primary
and most basic piece of data we will collected was the number of participants each event
brought in. With the main goal of participation in mind, our rate of attendance became a
rudimentary instrument in measuring our success. No higher benefit comes if we cannot get
people through the door, so tracking attendance, although obvious, was key. From there, we
also asked all participants to fill out a survey immediately following the event. This survey will be
meant to capture two pieces of valuable information- why did they come and how did they
experience the event?

We wanted to first unpack that number of participants so that we can better understand who is
coming. From their age to resident neighborhood to how they heard about our event, we used
the first part of the survey to help paint a better picture of the type of people we are attracting to
our events and if that picture represented the diverse range of the San Diego community. How
many HTH students came? How many participants from the immediate area? How many came
from outside of our social and professional network? From those answers, we assessed how
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our efforts could better grow and become more inclusive.

The rest of our survey was be dedicated to participants providing qualitative feedback on their
experience and general assessment of the event. We asked the participants why they decided
to come out to the event and how they heard about our efforts. After, we asked questions
regarding the event itself:

Did you find this experience valuable? Why?
What did you enjoy most about the experience?
What would of made this experience better?
What else can we do to engage the neighboring community?

These questions survey were then collected, coded, and analyzed to pull out the consensus
benefits and suggestions. In analyzing the data, I looked for common themes that weaved
through the responses. Those themes are outlined at the end of every FIndings chapter. By
focusing on the event itself (and not the larger theme of community building), we solicited
helpful guidance that directed our next step. We used that feedback to not only improve our
community initiative and each specific program, but to also better understand the nature and
perceived worth of our efforts.

Focus Group Methods

Before the event, we asked a small group of participants to sit down with us after the event to
discuss their experience. During this time, we conducted both a group interview and a series of
individual interviews with each participant. I video recorded these interviews and documented
their responses in my own observation journal. I then transcribed each interview and coded their
responses looking to document both key phrases and shared themes. In the group interview, I
generated and facilitated conversation (rather than straight Q+A) with more open-ended
questions that the entire group can build upon. (for example- What did you like most about this
experience?) I focused the questions around the event and shared experience, with the
intention that the group, not the direct questions, revealed the benefits of the event and the
importance of community building.

In the individual interviews, I asked more direct questions about both the personal and social
value of our event. I asked each participant for their feedback, but was especially interested in
their specific views on their community and the potential of community building. Would you
support more initiatives like this? What are the benefits of events like this? My questions served
as prompts for these specific questions about community building and our initiative.

To identify themes in both, I intended to highlight their general response to the event, perceived
benefits for the community, suggestions for improvement, and their potential investment in
future efforts. Many of these themes are captured in the presented videos through each
FIndings chapter. We used coded themes and interview transcriptions to also look for what
specific elements worked for the event and what we can later incorporate for the next program.
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Each event proved to be completely different, but we used these valuable interviews to best
understand why people came to our events, what they enjoyed most, and how we could
replicate those elements in other programs and community projects.

Observation Methods

Throughout the entire process, I kept an observation journal to record my experience and
thoughts. Leading up to the event, I tried to sit down every week and write the steps, progress,
and lessons learned from the week. These notes not just included observations from the actual
event and conducted interviews, but also the trials and tribulations of organizing these events.
From finding cooperative venues to the power of social media, I wanted to use the journal to
capture our evolving organizational strategies and those pivotal moments that came to shape
our program. Through this lens, I focused my journaling on documenting the vital steps taken to
facilitating these events and the inevitable missteps that come from any important work.

I did not realistically have the opportunity to journal throughout the event. However, I
deliberately kept the journal on me to capture specific bright spots or scenes or breakdowns
worth noting both for the research and future programming. These notes are solely qualitative,
but my narrative of the event were a primary instrument in understanding the execution of our
event compared to the designed vision for it. Although that was obviously be slanted, these
notes and reactions were helpful in capturing the general energy of the participants. Those
notes and consequent journal entry were then analyzed alongside the feedback from the
participants to best tell the story of our program and to qualify the events value.

We wanted to use this research not to absolutely answer the larger questions that inspired this
research, but instead to better inform our next steps in developing our own community initiative.
Our approach may be limited, but ultimately, this action research is our story.