We tracked down the super-busy Dr. Sharon Sessions, the 100% Socorro County initiative leader, to ask her about the goals of the 100% Socorro initiative and the upcoming 100% Socorro Summit on June 14th.

Question: Why did you start the 100% New Mexico initiative?

Sharon Sessions: The 100% New Mexico initiative was introduced to Socorro County early as a framework that directly addressed the issues in our community. The folks who advocated for the initiative were directly involved in services, and recognized the value of bringing all of the surviving and thriving services together with county-wide coordination and collaboration.

Question: What are your biggest challenges that you want the initiative to address in your county?

Sharon Sessions: The biggest challenges are making sure that our county has all of the resources that our families need, and that they are able to access them. In some cases, the services families need don’t exist, in others, we have the services and resources, but families are not aware they exist or they have other barriers to accessing services. The main goal for driving the 100% New Mexico initiative in Socorro County is to remove all barriers so that every member of our county has access to and is empowered to seek the services they need not only to survive, but to thrive.

Question: What are the opportunities and innovations you want to explore through the initiative, including developing a 100% Family Center: One-Stop Service Hub?

Sharon Sessions: Community Schools and a 100% Family Center are the primary opportunities that we’d like to explore with this initiative. We have a fantastic start with community schools, with Socorro High School having a Community Schools Coordinator and further expansion planned for the other schools in the district. Our next major effort is to develop a One-Stop Service Hub that literally connects the existing services with folks who need them, and that has the staff and resources to innovate new solutions for closing gaps in services.

Question: You have a summit coming up. What can you tell me about your goals for the event?

Sharon Sessions: In addition to raising awareness about the 100% Socorro initiative, our primary goals for the 100% Socorro Summit on June 14th are:

1. To receive community input regarding priorities for a 100% Family Center
2. To gain support and commitment from Socorro Leadership to support us with identifying a location and resources to launch and sustainably run the One-Stop Service Hub.

As a team, the 100% Socorro group has leveraged each of our experiences and expertise in identifying community needs, but we really need the community voice to make sure we are capturing the most important services as well as creating an environment that is welcoming and that families will actually use as a resource for finding services.

The 100% Service Hub is a major project with the potential to transform our community, and we are grateful for Socorro’s leadership in brainstorming solutions and ways to support this initiative. They have the vision and desire for Socorro to realize the full potential of a thriving and vibrant community, and we’d like to provide clarity on that vision to further gain support and to demonstrate to the entire community the significance of the 100% Socorro Family Center as a resource for accelerating us to realizing that vision.

The 100% Socorro Summit will take place on June 14, 2024. Check out the summit page to learn more and register for this transformative event.