The cross-sector Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership group is working with StriveTogether, a consultant firm that has led similar efforts in 70 cities. The collective impact process brings leaders together around common goals to solve complex community challenges by identifying shared outcomes, measuring change and using data to inform decisions.

The Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership operates as a coordinating body to ensure Pontiac community members have the access, opportunities and resources needed to thrive. The work of the Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership is funded by the Pontiac Funders Collaborative, a group of committed regional philanthropic organizations that awarded an operating grant to Oakland University to serve as fiscal sponsor for the partnership. Members of the Pontiac Funders Collaborative include the Ballmer Group, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, Flagstar Bank Foundation, General Motors, New Economy Initiative, The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, Tauber Family Foundation, The William Davidson Foundation, and Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation.

A group of 40 dedicated Pontiac community stakeholders have been meeting regularly during the last year to establish the Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership. The group is in the process of identifying a set of outcomes and finalizing a formal structure in which community members across all sectors will have a voice in how the partnership will operate and make decisions to solve community challenges.

Central to the partnership’s community-driven purpose are three major goals: change regional perceptions about the city, uplift every voice through the collective impact process, and implement shared community-wide goals that lead to positive outcomes for Pontiac citizens. Pontiac residents and business leaders are encouraged to learn more, get involved and lend their voices to guide this process.

The Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership is currently working on identifying needs in education, economic development and prosperity, and quality of life.

Samino Scott, Ph.D., serves as the inaugural executive director of the Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership. Scott was selected in November 2020 through a competitive process by Pontiac community stakeholders. A Pontiac native, proud graduate of the Pontiac school district and alumnus of Oakland University and Eastern Michigan University, he most recently served as community affairs director for the United Way of Southeastern Michigan.

“I’m thrilled to be a part of this initiative that builds on the excitement and renewed energy community residents, business and civic leaders have toward a stronger and more thriving City of Pontiac,” says Dr. Scott. “As executive director, I’m not making decisions in isolation. In this new role, I will work with our partners to build consensus and drive results in shared community goals.”

OU-Pontiac Initiative

Oakland University and the community of Pontiac have a longstanding relationship. In 2014, they co-created the OU-Pontiac Initiative to build and sustain mutually beneficial programming with special focus in six areas of need identified in collaboration with the community: PK-16 education, civic engagement, economic and workforce development, healthcare and wellness, arts and culture, and building capacity for non-profits and neighborhoods.

Teresa Rodges, OU senior director of community service and pre-college programs, is a member of the OU-Pontiac Initiative. Born and raised in the City of Pontiac and a graduate of OU, Rodges says the University has always had an important role in the community.

“Oakland University is the perfect partner to be named the anchor institution of the Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership because the University is already engaged with efforts to move the city forward,” says Rodges. She explains that the two organizations, the collective impact partnership and the OU-Pontiac Initiative, operate on the same premise. “We don’t tell citizens what they need, we ask them. When you engage in the community, you get to find out what people need and work together toward a common goal.”

Oakland University President Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, M.D., looks forward to further deepening OU’s relationship with the Pontiac community. “Oakland University is proud to be part of the Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership and we look forward to continuing to serve the Pontiac community in this new role as anchor institution,” she says.

Learn more about the Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership.