Coastal Plain Community Needs Assessment
Assessing community needs across South Georgia
South Georgia Research Partners conducted a comprehensive community needs assessment for Coastal Plain Area Economic Opportunity Authority, a community action agency serving Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks, Cook, Echols, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Tift, and Turner counties.
The project combined demographic, economic, housing, education, and health indicators with an original community survey that received 815 responses. The research also evaluated residents’ experiences with Coastal Plain’s Head Start, utility assistance, food voucher, weatherization, and other antipoverty programs.
The findings identified affordable housing, childcare, mental healthcare, utility costs, food insecurity, and access to well-paying employment as significant continuing needs. These results provided the empirical foundation for Coastal Plain’s Community Action Plan and its strategies for promoting economic stability and long-term self-sufficiency throughout the region.