Leadership Elites in a Community Context

Sampson’s list of positional leaders is accurate, I would say when attempting to conduct a study on the nature of leadership elites in a community context. Choosing people in education leadership, business leaders, religious leader, law enforcement leaders, political leaders, and community organization leaders I think we could all do that for our own communities unless, of course, you have only been in the area for a short period of time (i.e. recently moved in). I like that Sampson brought up the fact that besides these leaders there is always someone that assumes a “leadership” position. For instance, in my case it would most likely be the tenant that has lived in my apartment complex the longest. He seems to think he has some sort of duty to watch over everyone and he has lived in the apartment complex the longest. I would name our tenant manager, Joe, as a leader but all he does is hand you a key on the first day you move in and you really never have to see him again until you have to return that key. Rent  gets dropped off into a slot at his home which is located in another part of town. 

"The church cannot be an island." A quote taken by Sampson in an interview with the pastor of a leading church on the South Side of Chicago. I think this sums up my personal community here in St. George. Sampson clearly states it, "Religious leaders do not do only religion-one of their biggest influences concerns politics." (pg. 341, Sampson) Despite the low levels of collective efficacy in South Chicago to hear a pastor from the area say that is very interesting. The same area that carries low levels of collective efficacy also reports an increase in leadership connectivity (pg.345, Sampson) Perhaps the collective efficacy within a specific church community should be measured. Especially, in an area where Religious ties amongst elites is higher. 

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One of the main issues today is the uninsured people needing to get insured in order to get regular check up and avoid potentially life threatening diseases/sicknesses. Latinos stand in that group of people that ranks high for being uninsured. According to one article 18,000 people die each year due to the lack of health insurance (Castelblanch, Web).

For my research project I have gone back and forth on many ideas and I kept returning to the idea of Latinos and the state of their health. I am sure we are all aware of the recent changes in the health reform. I work for AmeriCorps a state funded agency that is helping out with the new Affordable Care Act. For two weeks I underwent certification as a Certified Application Counselor. Basically, I help individuals without health insurance enroll in a health plan. However, with a very badly built website the enrollment process has been stagnant. Which is frustrating for a person in my position especially in a State where a word such as "Obama-care" does not exactly appeal to the majority of patients. The current numbers for people that have been able to sign up for are in the low 100,000. Certain States across the United States have reported only a handful of sign ups! I believe the main problem with this is not only the website but for the St. George region it's the outreach aspect of it all.

I would like to research ways in which we can potentially reach the uninsured, especially the Latino population. Some may just be afraid because they are illegal immigrants but with legal children and are unaware their child could qualify for health insurance.We want to insure as many people as possible by March 1, 2014. I have researched the manner in which other communities have gone about this. The best gateway I feel is a personal approach, going in places where Latinos gather and setting up booths where we can help people and answer their questions. 

Castellblanch, R. (2002, Aug 09). Uninsured latinos are in need of healthcare. Philadelphia Tribune. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/337741214?accountid=27045