Visit us at our headquarters in the East Side of Saint Paul, or at our offices in Minneapolis, Willmar, and Austin.
Office hours. Monday - Friday: 8:30 am - 5:00 pm. Saturday-Sunday: Closed - Click here for holiday closure dates
Visit us at our headquarters in the East Side of Saint Paul, or at our offices in Minneapolis, Willmar, and Austin.
Office hours. Monday - Friday: 8:30 am - 5:00 pm. Saturday-Sunday: Closed - Click here for holiday closure dates
CLUES is actively transforming lives and communities by deepening our programming to build social capital and economic mobility and by strengthening the broader ecosystem through investing in Latino leadership and driving long-lasting systems changes.
In early 2018, CLUES developed a new theory of change that responds to the fear and isolation our community is facing due to anti-immigrant policies and rhetoric.
CLUES conducted a series of community listening sessions which informed our new Transformational Change and Community Engagement Framework.
The framework highlights our commitment to institutionalize co-creation of programming with our community, address policy and systems change at an institutional level and strengthen our multi-generational approach to programming.
We know that providing direct social services alone will not result in the transformational impact that we aim to achieve. The basis for our Framework is our theory of change which states:
If supportive relationships and a sense of belonging help to heal people who have experienced or are experiencing complex social, economic and emotional trauma…
THEN, creating meaningful interventions that are culturally-anchored and networks of support where people feel valued and connected will build resilience, hope, and pathways out of poverty for individuals and families to thrive.
- CLUES Theory of Change
Our Transformational Change and Community Engagement Framework strategies include:
We believe that it is essential to support Latinos in building social capital, including formal and informal networks of support that meet them where they are and can help them achieve their dreams to thrive. This is especially important for many of our participants, since people living in poverty often have fewer actual and perceived social supports and are less likely to have social connections that cross race, culture and economic status. We do this through utilizing a cohort model and leveraging cultural practices, such as lending circles.
We are working to build community, define narratives and empower for social change through Latino arts and cultural engagement. By embedding arts and culture across our services and programs and by integrating it throughout the Latino community in Minnesota, we will elevate and amplify our cultural richness, promote healing and wellbeing, and define “Latinidad” in all its diversity. Learn More
We recognize the role that we play in advancing advocacy and power-building within our community to more deeply effect change at a systems-level, which in turn can transform the individual’s experience of their community and lay a foundation for long-term advancement.
Recognizing that policies have the power to further marginalize communities, we believe it’s critical that those who are directly affected by policy must have a voice and be engaged to catalyze change. We are investing time in developing new strategies and opportunities to build community leadership and engage community as experts in creating their own solutions.
We use racial disparities and equitable access as critical lenses through which we prioritize our systems-change work. We are seeking equitable systems that support our community to thrive—not just survive. The voices of participants guide all that we do, and we build adaptive services that lead to transformational change. Learn More
CLUES is leveraging its institutional leadership to support Latinos to lead, connect and make lasting change happen. We are shifting narratives and resources for Latinos in both urban (with a specific focus on East Side of St. Paul) and rural areas (with offices in Austin and Willmar). We pair direct services with advocacy and leadership training for participants to address systemic barriers that impede success for our community.
CLUES is a nonprofit public charity recognized as tax exempt by the IRS under section 501(c)(3). CLUES tax ID: 41-1386986. Our Donor Privacy Policy can be found here.
