All America City: Does your program help children?

Published 3:12 pm Friday, December 18, 2015

It could be part of city’s All America City entry

The city of Salisbury is calling for preliminary entries from area programs that focus on supporting healthy children in school and in life as part of Salisbury’s entry in to the 2016 All America City Award competition, sponsored by the National Civic League.

Other collaborative programs benefitting the community may also be entered for review. The city anticipates entering the 2016 competition.

According to the National Civic League website, its organization “has recognized and celebrated the best in American civic innovation with the prestigious All-America City Award since 1949.” Ten communities throughout the U.S. are chosen each year for their extraordinary efforts in tackling local challenges.

 

Salisbury programs for review must include an overall description, a list of all organizations contributing to its success, specific goals and objectives, and demonstrated measureables or statistics. It is desired that programs be in existence for five years or more. From the entries gathered, three will be chosen as part of the Salisbury All America City Award presentation.

 

If chosen as a finalist community, participants will travel to Denver to present the Salisbury story to a jury of national experts.

 

The National Civic League says this year’s goal is “to raise up local examples of innovative and effective community problem-solving that recognizes all the factors that influence the success of children and uses all sectors to address those factors.” Potential efforts could include:

  • School attendance
  • Child/family health (including targeted community health efforts)
  • Positive discipline interventions
  • Transportation (particularly focused on enabling children and their parents to access key services, employment or school)
  • Poverty/housing
  • Healthy food access
  • Job opportunities/skill development
  • Creating safe neighborhoods
  • Creating healthy natural environments that support young people’s learning, activity or health.

 

Please send program entries or address questions to Linda McElroy, Communications, City of Salisbury, 217 S. Main Street, Salisbury, NC 28144, (704) 638-4460 or lmcel@