After tripling the number of youth served in 2016, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County Board of Directors was honored on March 16 during Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s annual Southeast Leadership Conference in Montgomery, Alabama. The prestigious High Performance Board Team’ award recognizes Clubs whose board members achieved team excellence in the strategic areas of marketing, resource development, outreach to under-served youth and planning. The Maury County Club’s Board took home the top honor for the entire 13 state southeast region of Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
In early May 2016, Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County was named the before and after school care provider for Maury County Public Schools. Club leadership had just three months to adequately staff and prepare for the significant expansion, opening 11 new locations prior to the start of the 2016/2017 school year. As the Club made arrangements to launch each new site while maintaining its original Teen Center and Wayne Street locations, Maury County parents received notice just seven days before the school years’ close that the current provider had elected to cancel its summer 2016 program. Following the unexpected announcement, displaced families contacted the Club for assistance and the Board of Directors approved a plan to open two additional locations for the summer to service these 200 youth left without care.
In just one week, Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County staff and nearly a dozen board members provided support for the expansion by building an all-new professional, parent and donor-friendly interactive website, drafting press releases, conducting media outreach, writing informational letters for distribution in schools, staffing registration tables at Marvin Wright and McDowell Elementary Schools to directly answer parent questions or concerns, collecting applications, fielding phone calls, and serving as the face of the Club in the community. Their efforts paid off as the Club’s expanded summer program was a success, serving 202 new youth while also laying the groundwork for rolling out its 11 new Club “Greatness Academies” in Maury County Public Schools on Aug. 1 of the 2016/2017 school year.
More than 600 youth are currently enrolled in the Club, an astonishing 200 percent increase year over year. To date this year, board members have proved critical to the Club’s planning process by providing counsel on numerous expansion plan revisions and hiring changes during monthly meetings, helped to research and draft a Memorandum of Understanding agreement between the Club and Maury County Public School System, conducted budget reviews, and voted twice to dramatically increase the number of children currently served.
“As a board, we see the potential of our kids and want to empower them to dream big,” said Board member Kristy Bergstrom. “We know that the Club’s unique programs centered around good character and citizenship, healthy lifestyles, and academic success have proven effective in helping Maury County youth graduate on time and become responsible adults who achieve their goals. We are honored to receive this award and thank the community for its support.”
The Club’s mission is to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens. For more information about Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County programs or its “Greatness Academies,” visit www.bgcmaury.com.
Photo Caption: From left to right, Jon Anderson from Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi, BGCMC Board Members Bob Baisden and Kristy Bergstrom, national Club alum and former Youth of the Year Andria Layton, BGCMC Board Member and Superintendent of Maury County Schools Dr. Chris Marczak, and Duane Hinshaw, Regional Vice President, Southeast from BGCA.
