Community Improvement Opportunities
These organizations offer ways for the people of your community to come together to improve the community. The emphasis in all three of these programs is to get the citizens to bond together to reach goals and solve problems.
Other than these three ideas, there are a multitude of programs a community can engage in to spark improvement and growth. These include such items as town hall meetings, mock elections, DebateWatch events, and voter registration drives.
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All-America City |
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The All-America City award was started in 1957 by the National Civics League. Each year 10 communities are presenting the award for displaying the true American spirit at work. As stated on their website, the criteria for All-America City recipients are:
"For a community to be named an All-America City, it must be able to demonstrate successful resolution of community issues through collaborative effort. Award winning criteria include the following: active citizen involvement, effective and efficient government performance, maximized local philanthropic and volunteer resources, a strong capacity for cooperation and consensus building, community vision and pride, inter-group relations, community information sharing, and intercommunity cooperation."
Winners of the All-America City Award get national recognition and heightened media attention. This is a proven method to boost the economy because businesses that are looking to expand look to All-America City winners because of the strong community bond that the people have.
Visit the All-America City website for more information  .
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Pew-Partnership for Civic Change |
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The Pew-Partnership is a non-profit consulting agency that can help you plan out strategies to strengthen your community. Since its creation in 1992, Pew has worked with governments, communities, foundations and non-profit agencies. The Pew-Partnership is a stand-alone, non-profit consulting firm that is part of the University of Richmond administration. Their website has information on their programming tactics and also additional material for community leaders.
Visit the Pew-Partnership website for more information .
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Kentucky League of Cities |
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Most communities in the Commonwealth are members of the Kentucky League of Cities. The KLC provides many different kinds of legal and financial services as well as leadership training for your community. Their most notable programs are the Enterprise Cities Award, which is similar to the All-America City Award; the Educational Certificate programs that provide the opportunity for continued education and help you improve your community; and Safety Grants that are designed to give members of the KLC Insurance program a yearly grant to help supplement your city’s safety budget.
Visit the Kentucky League of Cities website for more information .
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