Category: Securing Atlanta’s Future

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 […]

By Rebecca Parshall, PhD Learn4Life (L4L) recently released the 6th annual State of Education in Metro Atlanta. The report highlights three focus areas: our region’s educational data, how to use data as a flashlight, and some of the strategies that are improving outcomes for traditionally underserved students. The data can help all stakeholders play a […]

By GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students One Saturday morning in November, GEEARS’ Pre-K Recruitment Specialist Dawan Barfield stood before a meeting room at the Dean Rusk YMCA Head Start Academy. With his characteristic warmth and ease, he welcomed tables full of volunteers, who smiled back at him over boxed breakfasts.  “Let’s start […]

By David Jernigan, President & CEO, Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta FAMILY HOLDS CANDLELIGHT VIGIL FOR 12-YEAR-OLD KILLED NEAR ATLANTIC STATION 15-YEAR-OLD GIRL SHOT TO DEATH AT CLAYTON COUNTY PARTY ATTENDED BY HUNDREDS APS’S STUDENT ADVISORY COUNCIL GIVES CALL TO ACTION DURING RALLY TO STOP GUN VIOLENCE With more than three dozen young […]

By GEEARS As the state agency responsible for meeting the child care and early education needs of Georgia’s children and their families, the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) is constantly looking for ways to improve the experiences of our state’s youngest students.  In the late 2000s, a series of independent studies found […]

By Damian Ramsey  The College Bound Partnership: Making College More Affordable  The government sets aside funds each year to help students pay for postsecondary education, but too often students are unable to access them. In fact, $2B+ is left unclaimed annually. Why? Because the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is intensely complicated, especially […]

By Comer Yates, Executive Director, Atlanta Speech School Just before the start of this school year, I had the privilege of serving as the closing speaker at the Alabama Early Childhood Education Conference, the theme of which was the “Measure of Tomorrow.” The new school year was on the immediate horizon, and the teachers had […]

By GEEARS  These days, the topic of mental health seems to be everywhere. In the wake of the pandemic, medical practitioners, educators, and government leaders are all freshly aware of mental health challenges and the imperative that we incorporate their treatment into everyday healthcare.   Yet, the public still has some catching up to do when […]

By Brooks Robinson Board Director and Technology Advisory Board member of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta and advisor to technology companies and investors including Tech Square Ventures and Engage Technology has transformed how we live and work. The need to continually invest in technology and innovation is critical for companies to remain competitive. […]

By Sharmen M. Gowens, CEO, YWCA of Greater Atlanta More than a century since the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution passed, giving women the right to vote, women still have concerns about economic security, violence and health care in daily life. The women of Georgia say these issues are top of mind, and they […]