News Room
06.17.2013 blog
Guest Post: The Doe Fund’s New Youth Initiative
By Madeline Kaye, Manager of Communications and Public Affairs, The Doe Fund on Jun 17 2013
The Doe Fund is a dynamic member of Opportunity Nation’s coalition that is addressing disconnection from educational and career opportunities among homeless youth in New York City. Check out their new program below and get more information here: http://www.doe.org/
As we survey the landscape after the worst economic downturn since the great depression, we see encouraging images: businesses are growing, workers are finding jobs, and the housing market is on the rebound. While the rest of the country is emerging from the economic disaster, The Doe Fund is providing relief to some of the hardest hit citizens of New York City – homeless youth.
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06.14.2013 blog
Opportunity Nation’s First Hill Day
Mark Edwards, Executive Director on Jun 14 2013
I am heartened and inspired by Opportunity Nation’s first Hill Day this week, by the energy and passion of our Opportunity Leaders and Scholars, by the power of our bipartisan message and by the positive response from Members of Congress and their staff.
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06.14.2013 press release
Opportunity Nation Leader Linda Nelson Receives Grant to Reconnect Youth
Opportunity Nation Leader Linda Nelson and the Ouachita Calhoun County Literacy Council, Inc. received a $10,000 grant from the Dollar General Literacy Organization to support its literacy programs. Specifically, the grant will allow the literacy council to pilot Transitional Pathways, a program designed to assist with reconnecting young adults to school and work. The initiative will be a small scale model for closing the skills gap and decreasing the nearly 18% of youth population currently out of work and school within the areas served by the Ouachita Calhoun County Literacy Council, Inc.
Linda Nelson and her colleagues in Ouachita County have organized around the Opportunity Index and this grant is proof of their hard work. We are tremendously proud of them!
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06.14.2013 blog
Middle Jobs: America’s Job Market and What You Need to Succeed
Jessie Turner, Opportunity Nation on Jun 14 2013
For the last several decades, completion of a four-year college degree has been a prominent symbol of success in America. Regardless of what you study or where you attend, personal and professional success has typically been measured by degree accumulation. Those who achieve college and professional degrees are promised a seat at the middle class table, if they want it.
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06.13.2013 blog
Safety and Opportunity
Tamara Keeney, Opportunity Nation Research and Database Fellow on Jun 13 2013
For week two of our summer indicator blog series, we take a look at community safety. The Opportunity Index measures community safety using the number of violent crimes, including homicide, rape, robbery and assaults per 100,000 people. As illustrated by a comparison between violent crime rates in Philadelphia County (1,382 crimes per 100,000) and neighboring Montgomery County (202 crimes per 1000,000), the variation from one county to the next can be dramatic.
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06.12.2013 news
Opportunity Nation: Help young Americans reach economic mobility
Walker Moseley and Mark Edwards, The Miami Herald on Jun 12 2013
In our democracy, we teach our children to speak up for themselves. We sign petitions, attend school board meetings, slap bumper stickers on our cars. We vote. Every day, millions of Americans exercise their cherished constitutional rights in ways large and small — our freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and the freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
As Congress struggles with gridlock, partisan division and pressures exerted by paid lobbyists, it is more vital than ever that our commonsense voices are heard on critical issues facing our nation and its future. This is particularly true if we are to expand economic mobility to more Americans — a goal with bipartisan support and growing urgency in the global economy.
At Opportunity Nation, we believe it will take all of us, working together, to achieve this goal. One of the most powerful tools we have as Americans is citizen advocacy. We can all support programs and policies that are designed to accelerate economic, educational and civic well-being and bring them to the attention of our elected officials.
Read more at the Miami Herald!
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06.11.2013 news
Rob Denson on Great Day Iowa KCWI
President Rob Denson, Des Moines Area Community College, previews Opportunity Nation's first Hill Day
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06.11.2013 news
The Talk Station 107.1 FM Interview with Mark Edwards and Opportunity Leader Trevor Brownlow
Lockwood Phillips, host of ViewPoints on The Talk Station, discusses Opportunity Nation's Hill Day and the Opportunity Nation campaign.
Listen to the interview here!
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06.11.2013 blog
Opportunity Nation’s First Hill Day
Mark Edwards, Executive Director on Jun 11 2013
This Wednesday, Opportunity Nation will be hosting our first Hill Day in Washington, DC. I’m looking forward to joining two dozen Opportunity Leaders and Scholars and several Coalition partners to meet with members of Congress and talk about our Shared Plan and our passion for expanding opportunity to more Americans.
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06.10.2013 press release
Quincy Continues to Help Youth Discover Opportunity
QUINCY – The City of Quincy’s Department of Planning & Community Development (PCD) wishes to thank the nearly 100 individuals and more than 40 organizations for their time and efforts in participating in the “Opportunity Quincy” initiative over the past fiscal year. PCD is also excited to announce the direction of the initiative over the next fiscal year as determined by the Opportunity Quincy Advisory Council.
Opportunity Quincy is an initiative of PCD, in connection with Opportunity Nation (http://www.opportunitynation.org), to practice collective impact through community conversations, events, & grants – with a core goal to increase opportunity for youth.
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