Overview

Why • What • Measuring • How • Bottom Line

History

Jay Fawcett founded WSC March 1, 2007 after his congressional campaign.  During his campaign he heard time and time again from frustrated citizens about the need for reasoned, researched, and non-partisan approaches to solve problems affecting the Rocky Mountain region.  Jay along with other committed citizens answered their call to action and dedicated WSC to the creation of implementable solutions for community issues including healthcare, transportation, education and the economic vitality of our region. 

Reasoned, researched, and non-partisan approaches to solving problems are needed to address issues affecting the Rocky Mountain Region.

Western Strategies Center (WSC) is a nonprofit 501(c)3 policy center dedicated to identifying nonpartisan solutions and implementation plans for policy issues at the local, state, regional, and federal levels.  Our initial goal is to help make Colorado Springs a strong, vital community with an enviable quality of life.
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Colorado Springs is a large and growing community, the 49th largest incorporated city and 83rd largest metropolitan area in the United States.  We are outgrowing the ideas and systems that have made this such an incredible place to live.  Solid information about local conditions will be critical as local leaders guide the community forward.

In Colorado Springs and El Paso County, data on local conditions are gathered by various public and private organizations, many of which specialize in one policy area.  WSC has the flexibility to move quickly and gather timely information on a range of topics that are outside the purview of existing organizations. We will enable action by arming community leaders with quality research that promotes constructive debate and meaningful solutions.

WSC’s primary target audience includes the Mayor, the City Council, the County Commissioners, the Economic Development Corporation, and the Chambers of Commerce.  Our secondary target audience includes the community leaders and stakeholders who are already working on the issues that our research explores.
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Public Policy Research

The primary activity at Western Strategies Center is locally focused policy research, with an emphasis on identifying potential solutions to local issues.  We produce three types of policy documents:

• Strategy Papers are in-depth reports of broad issues.  These papers include suggestions for how the community can build on its strengths to enhance our local services.
• Issue Papers are in-depth reports of narrower topics.  These papers clarify complex issues and provide basic information that informs public discussion.
• Briefing Papers are short reports on focused topics.  These papers provide snapshots of the community and serve as useful reference tools for discussion of larger issues.

At Western Strategies Center, we believe that there is tremendous knowledge and resourcefulness within our local community.  Our research process therefore always begins with interviews of local experts and stakeholders in the topic area.  We supplement this knowledge with substantial independent research, which provides a basis for community discussion about how Colorado Springs is doing things relative to other communities around the country.

A second activity at Western Strategies Center is the hosting of community seminars to discuss WSC’s research findings.  Cooperating with other organizations whenever possible, WSC will initiate public comment and discussion on the issues facing our community. 

Western Strategies Center offers opportunities for qualified graduate or undergraduate students seeking first-hand experience in public policy research.  Unpaid internships can be arranged individually or through a college or university for academic credit.  WSC also hopes to establish a Resident Scholar program, whereby students are placed with WSC by their academic institutions, which will pay tuition to WSC as part of an academic program. 

In addition to our public policy work, WSC also offers research and analysis consulting services.  WSC’s fact-based, non-partisan approach extends to our consulting work, ensuring that clients receive clear and unbiased reports on the issues that matter to them.  Our extensive network of contacts allows us to bring in additional experts on a project-specific basis to get the job done. 

WSC will host forums for other organizations or companies on a fee-for-service basis.  WSC can provide a range of services, from finding a location to publicizing the event to publishing notes and proceedings.  We take care of the details so that the sponsoring organization can focus on getting their message across.
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Western Strategies Center has established the following metrics to assess our impact on the local community:

• Media coverage of our research or community forums.
• The number of times our research reports are downloaded from our website, or requested in paper form.
• The number of people who attend community seminars where our research is discussed.
• Invitations from community groups to present our research to their members.
• The appearance of our research papers on the agenda of the City Council, County Commissioners, and other community organizations.
• Requests from the public or from elected officials for additional information on one of our research topics.
• For Strategy Papers, the selection of any Courses of Action for discussion or implementation by community groups or elected officials.

In addition to these measures, Western Strategies Center will design a survey instrument to be distributed to issue stakeholders and our primary target audience.  The survey will be distributed twice, at the six month and one year anniversaries of the release of Strategy Papers and Issue Papers.  The survey will assess the extent to which respondents found the papers useful and informative, and whether respondents made use of the papers in their work. 

Community response, as well as feedback from our surveys, will inform Western Strategies Center’s follow-up to the original research.  When warranted, we will update the original research.  If there is strong community interest in a sub-topic of the report, or a closely related issue, that will guide our selection of future research topics.
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At Western Strategies Center, our activities are accomplished with maximum efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and our operational standards are guided by the nonprofit Standards for Excellence. Because personnel costs are our largest expense, the full-time staff is kept to a minimum and subject-matter experts are hired for each project on an as-needed basis. 

Currently, WSC’s funding comes primarily from grants and donations.  As the organization matures, we will become increasingly self-sustaining through revenues generated by our consulting and forum work.

WSC thanks the following organizations for their generous support:

• Rutt Bridges Family Foundation
• Ettinger Foundation

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The issues facing our community are big and they are complex – in order to solve them, we must set aside partisan politics and focus together on a common vision: a community growing stronger as it grows larger, appreciated from within and respected from without.

Through sophisticated research, discussion forums and consulting services, Western Strategies Center equips our community to take informed action on the issues that matter most.  We tackle complex issues, illuminate the facts that should drive discussion, and bring forward solutions that are meaningful, practical and do-able.

WSC creates the conditions for change by arming the community and elected leaders with information to drive things forward.
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Western Strategies Center is an affiliated fund of the Pikes Peak Community Foundation, a 501(c)3 public charity