| What you should know... Over the past ten years, NHSSV has facilitated various types of revitalization projects for neighborhoods in San Jose participating in the Strong Neighborhoods Initiative (SNI) (www.strongneighborhoods.org). These proposals begin at the neighborhood level and evolve into community-wide events. As part of the process, residents take on responsibilities to plan and coordinate various aspects of the event. The skills and knowledge gained during the process are useful in planning additional events in the neighborhood with NHSSV facilitation. Paint-a-Thon Neighborhood Improvement Projects Paint-a-Thons involved resident leadership to organize exterior house painting events. The neighborhood association selects the houses to be painted. Volunteer recruitment, materials coordination, and donations are a team effort among residents, the neighborhood association, and the NHSSV Community Outreach Specialist. In some cases, special projects such as brick repavings, wood-rot repair, and landscaping improvements are also included. The homeowner assists with planning the event. Emergentes Community Education Program Emergentes educates residents about housing maintenance, housing safety and community involvement. Through a partnership with the City of San Jose and San Jose State University, the current focus of Emergentes is Project REAM. The program promotes Residential Earthuake Awareness and Mitigation through free neighborhood workshops. Participants are provided with a Homebuyer’s Guide to Earthquake Safety and a preliminary home inspection for structural earthquake safety by SJSU Engineering students trained by a licensed engineer. | 
