Category: Securing Atlanta’s Future

August is back to school month for us Georgians. It’s also National Immunization Awareness Month. Most pediatricians would tell you that this is an optimal pairing; that parents should plan for their kids’ vaccinations as intentionally as they stock up on shiny new sneakers and fresh crayon boxes.  “In order for children to be ready […]

By Charlie Henn | Partner, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, LLP | Board Chair, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta  Atlanta is a wonderful place for many of us to live, work, and raise a family. At the same time:  The heartbreaking statistics concerning our youth led me to become deeply involved in the work […]

By GEEARS Since our inception more than a decade ago, GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students has been known in the state as a trusted resource for early childhood data. We’re proud of our in-depth community-focused tools like the Readiness Radar, but we’ve also wanted to provide a more high-level snapshot of how […]

By GEEARS When a parent of a young child, aged birth through three, enters the legal system with challenges such as substance use or allegations of neglect or abuse, courts have often removed the child from the home, either for foster care or adoption. While this is a tragedy for the parent, there’s growing recognition […]

Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta Provides Safety, Ignites Great Futures By Katy Barksdale, Trustee, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta | President, The Rockdale Foundation “When the truth was out there about my sexuality, I never searched for acceptance. That was until I was told by the ones I love ‘we don’t […]

The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club (MSRC), an annual program created and coordinated by GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students, has launched its 11th season!  On Thursday, June 1st, a host of bookish fans gathered on the lawn in front of the Woodruff Arts Center to celebrate. The crowd included at least 100 children […]

By Rear Admiral Casey W. Coane, U.S Navy (Ret.) In 1942, the United States was confronted with a shocking statistic—out of the first two-million young men who were examined for military duty by the Selective Service board, roughly 900,000, were turned away. This alerted many to the unfortunate possibility that nearly 45 percent of young […]

By Stacey Eames | Owner, Highland Bakery | Board Member, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta  We Bake Love – that’s our slogan at Highland Bakery, and that’s my motto for life. I bake with love and lead with love because I have passion for doing it right, a passion for making people happy. […]

The YWCA of Greater Atlanta team is gearing up for its Salute to Women of Achievement ceremony later this week — an annual event recognizing women who excel in their professions, and are committed to the YW’s mission to empower women and eliminate racism. The inductees are honored for their work within corporate, philanthropic, government, […]

By GEEARS Georgia’s legislative session is a frenetic, blood-pressure-raising marathon every year and at GEEARS, we’ve got to admit, we kind of love the sprint of it.  There’s a special kind of bond we early childhood advocates share during our 40 days (and some nights!) under the Gold Dome. We compare our throbbing feet and […]

By Lindsay Allward-Theimer, Vice President, Volunteer Partnerships & Strategy, Junior Achievement of Georgia When I was between jobs and transitioning out of the corporate sector, a friend of mine suggested that I volunteer in the community. He advised me that where I spend my free time may give me insights into what could be next. […]

EY Americas Vice Chair, Sam Johnson succeeds Chick-Fil-A President/COO, Tim Tassopoulos, in advising Atlanta’s largest youth-development non-profit By Sam R. Johnson | Trustee Chair, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta | Americas Vice Chair of Markets and Accounts, EY Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has proclaimed 2023 the Year of the Youth, calling upon the […]

By Damian Ramsey  While student exploration in college is generally considered a good thing, there is a hidden cost to students changing their majors after their first year. Changing majors after sophomore year has been linked to declines in college graduation, extended time to degree, and increased  student debt. Students change majors for many reasons. […]

By GEEARS We know a lot of data wonks who sit down to a pile of numbers, graphs, charts, and maps, as giddy as a foodie embarking upon a six-course meal.  As for the rest of us, who can think of many things more fun than digging into all that fact- and number-crunching, there is […]

By Sharmen Gowens, Former President & CEO of YWCA of Greater Atlanta Being the Chief Executive Officer of YWCA of Greater Atlanta gave me the opportunity of a lifetime. Over my seven+ years as CEO, I learned many lessons. I learned from the people who I worked with every day. I learned from community leaders. […]

By GEEARS On Tuesday, February 7th, Grey Kovacs marched down a hallway of the Coverdell Legislative Office Building at the Georgia Capitol. She had a long journey past quiet, glass-fronted offices to reach the workplace of her representative, Stacey Evans of House District 57, where she would deliver a letter advocating for paid family leave.  […]

Overview:  Over the past year, the cost of things has risen substantially. The United States, and really the world, is  experiencing the highest rate of inflation in more than four decades. In fact, adults who grew up in the  1970s will remember “stagflation,” when the  country experienced rising prices and interest rates, even though the […]

By Sondra Mims, retired Chief Academic Officer, after 36 years at the Atlanta Speech School Research is clear that our brains activate in concert with the experiences and characters we come to know through books. Whether it is through storybooks or great literature, our brains “feel” what the characters feel and become solution oriented when […]