Communicating with a Ndn-English Speaking Audience 
artnering with agencies and community based organizations (CBOs) that cater to a large non- 
English speaking audience often presents special challenges, but working with these CBOs pro¬ 
vides a vital link to the non-English-speaking community in Syracuse. 
First and foremost, their clientele is often frightened. Arriving from third-world countries and war-torn 
nations, these people are easily intimidated by any type of government intervention. Populations of 
Vietnamese, Bosnians, and Hispanics are more concerned about getting jobs, locating housing, and appro¬ 
priate schooling for their children. Childhood lead poisoning is not a priority issue as these people are just 
struggling to survive every day in a new and foreign land. Fear of government is another obstacle when 
dealing with immigrants. Syracuse partners with organizations that represent these non-English speaking 
groups since they have already gained the trust of community residents. This makes the job easier with¬ 
out the CBOs it would be nearly impossible to reach these special groups. CBO representatives serve as 
interpreters during face-to-face meetings with prospective program participants (tenants) to ensure effective 
communications. This involves more time and scheduling to arrange meetings and home visits. 
Many residents near the Southeast Asia Community Center speak Vietnamese, Chinese, and 
Korean, so the project conducts outreach and education in those languages. 
Project staff have worked to gain trust, knowing the sensitivities involved in interacting with 
residents in their homes. Syracuse staff knew that homeowners or tenants might be reluctant to 
participate because cleanliness and housekeeping are generally considered to be private issues. 
New immigrants with few alternative housing options might be reluctant to apply, for fear they 
could get in trouble with the landlord. By ensuring confidentiality, Syracuse successfully avoid¬ 
ed these pitfalls. 
Because the CBOs are located in neighborhoods with high lead levels, they are the logical and 
convenient locations from which to operate a HEPA vacuum-loaner program. Each participat¬ 
ing CBO is given wide latitude in the way it recruits residents to participate in the lead dust 
monitoring project. The CBOs are encouraged to design creative, effective outreach tactics. 
Several CBOs have initiated competitions to increase recruitment. For example, the Boys and 
Girls Clubs (of which there are three in the city), rewarded the club with the most lead dust 
project applications with a pizza party. 
Maintaining the strong personal relationships is also vital to the program s success. Project staff 
visit each CBO at least once a week to touch base about community issues and to restock the 
lead information on display there. Syracuse s outreach 
coordinator is invited by the CBOs to many different 
community events, including holiday parties, picnics, 
and meetings. Often, the Syracuse staff gives the CBOs 
crayons, coloring books, pencils, and small bars of soap 
to hand out to children. Much of the handout material 
is donated by local businesses. The crayons are printed 
with an important safety message they are labeled as 
being lead free according to ASTM D-4236. The bars 
of soap are a perfect way to remind children of the 
importance of hand-washing. 
T he HELP Lead Safe program in 
Providence, Rhode Island, also has found 
it tremendously important to involve bilingual 
members of the community in program out¬ 
reach, especially those with lead-sick children 
themselves. Providence also has a Spanish-speak¬ 
ing staff member to build trust with the large 
Latino population targeted by the program. 
Lead 
Dust Project Overview 
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