100 Best Communities for Young People for 2010 announced in Nation’s Capital
9/24/2010
By Hilary Strahota
America’s Promise Alliance and ING honored the winning cities, counties and towns working to decrease high school dropout rates and brighten the futures of America’s youth.
To celebrate the promise of America’s young people and honor the communities most dedicated to helping local youth graduate from high school, America’s Promise Alliance revealed its 2010 list of 100 Best Communities for Young People presented by ING. A September 21 ceremony was conducted on the National Mall in Washington, DC, to officially announce the names of the winning communities.
Alliance Chair Alma Powell, Alliance President and CEO Marguerite Kondracke, ING Foundation President Rhonda Mims, and celebrity guest Kellan Lutz of Twilight were on hand to celebrate the community champions and stress the importance of staying in school. They were joined by more than 300 community representatives, Alliance partners, local leaders, education stakeholders, youth supporters and young people who rallied behind the 2010 winners.
“The 100 Best Communities for Young People are taking bold and effective steps to help their youth graduate and lead healthy, productive lives,” said Alma J. Powell, Chair, America’s Promise Alliance. “Each community has proven that they are developing programs and implementing initiatives to provide young people with the essential resources they need to graduate from high school and succeed in college and a 21st century career.”
This year, more than 350 communities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia were nominated for the 100 Best competition. The winners, 30 of whom are first-time recipients, hail from 37 states. The communities were pinpointed on an expansive ceremonial U.S. map displayed at the event. A full list of the communities and an interactive showcase of their accomplishments is available.
The 100 Best competition is part of the Alliance’s Grad Nation campaign, a 10-year initiative to mobilize Americans to end the dropout crisis. The winners were selected by a distinguished panel of judges that included some of the nation’s most well-known civic, business and nonprofit leaders such as: William Bell, president and CEO of Casey Family Programs; Fr. Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA; Javier Palomarez, president and CEO of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; Larry Naake, executive director, National Association of Counties; Jane Beshear, first lady of the Commonwealth of Kentucky and Dominique Dawes, Olympic gold medalist and youth advocate.
“ING is committed to children’s education and to the advancement of education initiatives that prepare our young people to graduate and have successful futures,” said Mims. ”Our support for 100 Best demonstrates our goal of honoring communities that produce real, measurable results for improving the lives of young people.
“100 Best is an essential building block of Grad Nation, an inspiring national movement that seeks to ensure every young person graduates,” said Kondracke. “These winning communities are helping to build a generation of assertive, successful and dynamic young people that are the future of this country. Our ultimate hope is that 100 Best will inspire all communities across America to make a commitment to children, keep them in school and help them overcome the challenges that could otherwise determine their future.”
First conducted in 2005, the 100 Best competition is open to all communities that make children and youth a priority, including small towns, large cities, counties and school districts. In addition to enhancing local educational opportunities, most winning communities help facilitate greater access to quality health care for young people, encourage youth civic engagement and supply developmental resources that create better places for young people to live and grow.