Launched in 2024, the Community Pulse Team (CPT) is comprised of six residents from the zip codes of the South St. Pete Community Redevelopment Area (33705, 33711, 33712). CPT members spent their first six months on the team learning participatory research methods from Foundation Research, Evaluation, & Learning staff, ranging from survey development to interviewing skills to evaluative thinking and more.
Once trained, they crafted research questions and headed out in the community to interview local residents about mental health. Each month, CPT members reconvened at the Foundation to review their data and assess their progress and more. Once they hit the point of data saturation, they collaborated with Foundation staff to distill findings and themes that they then shared with local nonprofits working on issues of mental health and wellness.
After that, they began the process again with a focus on economic stability and needs.
“Our shared progress only succeeds when built with those of us who live in communities of color, never just for us,” said CPT member Sharion Thurman-Reeves. “By centering our voices in these communities, we honor our ancestral strength and replace historical mistrust with genuine partnership. We claim our agency, thus ensuring that every effort is not only just culturally relevant but is also deeply rooted in our sacred lived experiences, self-determination, and in the God-given authority of the people who live it.”
CPT members interviewed 45 residents about mental health and wellness and another 41 about economic stability, highlighting community needs, strengths, opportunities, and roadblocks. Learn more about their findings and work below.
News and Blog Posts
South St. Pete Community Members to Present their Original Research Findings to Local Nonprofits
Six South St. Pete residents went out into their neighborhoods as community researchers; on August 4th, they’ll present their findings to nonprofit leaders (St. Petersburg, Fla.) – For the past seven months, the six members of the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg’s Community Pulse Team have been out in South St. Pete, interviewing neighbors […]
Community Pulse Team: Report Out
For the past year, the resident researchers of the Foundation’s Community Pulse Team (CPT) have been working on qualitative research on mental health and wellness in the three zip codes of the South St. Pete Community Redevelopment Area. Earlier this year, they presented their research findings to a group of funded partners. They introduced their […]
Research, Evaluation & Learning Blog: Community Pulse Team
By Dr. Stephanie Rosado From Participatory Evaluation to Participatory Research: FHSP’s Community Pulse Team (CPT) Participatory research and evaluation refers to a community-driven approach that intentionally involves the people most affected by an issue being studied. After launching 2023-2024 grant funding to improve mental health and wellness (MHW) and economic equity and justice (EEJ) in […]
Media Coverage
Nonprofit Foundation for A Healthy St. Pete Volunteers Helping With Community Needs
Bay News 9 reporter Saundra Weathers sat down with CPT members and Foundation staff to learn more about this innovative program and CPT findings.