The America’s Promise Alliance, the organization behind Gen. Colin Powell’s nationwide initiative to give children the resources needed for success, has designated the City of Aurora’s Recreation Services Division as an Alliance partner and a “Promise Place.”
A Promise Place is a school, community center, place of worship, business or organization that provides to youth the Five Promises pledged through the America’s Promise initiative: caring adults, safe places, a healthy start, an effective education, and opportunities to help others.
Through Promise Places, the America’s Promise Alliance seeks to inspire others to take action on behalf of youth, raise awareness of local outlets providing the Five Promises to young people, promote and celebrate the Five Promises as a model for youth development, and strengthen relationships with organizations on a local level.
The America’s Promise Alliance awarded the designation to the Recreation Services Division based on the division’s demonstration of how the Five Promises are delivered to the young people it serves, outcomes achieved for youth, and alignment with America’s Promise Alliance goals and objectives.
The city’s Recreation Services Division makes more than 260,000 youth contacts each year through recreational and youth development programs, providing healthy activity choices in safe recreation centers and schools. The activities, led by adult teachers and mentors, teach a variety of life skills and offer numerous opportunities to help others, both informally and formally.
Through the division’s Office of Youth Development, staff has gathered data from the community on the state of the Five Promises in Aurora and presented this to the community. Subsequently, the community has organized Five Promises teams to work on specific goals for each promise and develop action steps toward achieving these goals.
The Aurora Youth Commission has held annual Town Hall meetings for youth since 2006, engaging up to 80 youth at any one time in discussion of youth needs in Aurora. The commission for youth ages 14 to 19 creates an opportunity to volunteer to represent youth issues to the Aurora City Council.
Finally, the Recreation Services Division partners with schools in low-income areas to supply after-school academic and enrichment activities that connect youth to their school, improve academic performance and help them succeed.
The next Aurora’s Promise Community Action Team meeting from 12:30 to 2 p.m. April 27 at the Aurora Central Library, 14949 E. Alameda Parkway. For more information or to RSVP to this meeting, contact Becky Hoffman at bhoffman@auroragov.org or call 303-326-8709.
For more information on the Promise Places, visit www.americaspromise.org/promiseplaces.
| 
Print Article