Compass II

June 2004

"The Wabash Valley is a progressive community of caring and diverse people who highly value education, prosper through an energized economic center, whose leadership embraces a united vision, and where all people can live and participate because of the exceptional quality of life."

This vision of the Wabash Valley's future was developed through COMPASS II.  COMPASS II was designed to allow the Wabash Valley community to determine where it wanted to go and what was needed to move toward its vision of an ideal future.

COMPASS II began in July of 2002 with the formation of the COMPASS II Community Partnership, a diverse group of community leaders.   These volunteers provided leadership for this eight-county project to assess the Wabash Valley's social needs and identify the assets available to address such needs.  In COMPASS II, the Wabash Valley was defined to include Clay, Parke, Sullivan, Vermillion and Vigo counties in Indiana and Clark, Crawford and Edgar counties in Illinois.

Extensive data was collected from area residents.  Several hundred surveys were administered via mail and telephone to determine what the community believed were the most pressing needs.  Individual households were surveyed randomly.  Over 600 Key Informants were sent questionnaires. Populations not well represented in the surveys were interviewed through several focus groups.  This report describes the methodology utilized, the outcomes of the eight phases of COMPASS II, and shows county census information.   This report presents a compilation of the data and will assist leaders throughout the Wabash Valley as they work to bring the vision of the future to reality.

In addition to the data, this report focuses on the six issues found to be most important to the people of the Wabash Valley. For each issue, an Initiative Team, composed of community volunteers, identified desired community outcomes and developed action plans to reach each outcome. Implementation Teams, again composed of volunteers from the community, were created to carry out these action plans.

We thank all who were involved in the COMPASS II process. COMPASS II represents the efforts of many volunteers who participated on the Community Partnership, Task Forces, Initiative Teams and Implementation Teams, the Visioning Session, and the data collection process.  These dedicated volunteers have created a roadmap for the community-building process that points the direction to enhancing and improving the lives of all people living in the Wabash Valley!

Representing the COMPASS II Community Partnership and its sponsors, Indiana State University, the Wabash Valley Community Foundation and the United Way of the Wabash Valley, we are proud to present this report to the residents, leaders and service providers of the Wabash Valley.  It is designed to be used by public offcials, the private sector and the nonprofit sector to enhance the services provided in the Wabash Valley.  We are confident that you will find this COMPASS II report useful.  You will see the COMPASS II initiative continue with the implementation of the action plans seen in this report.