Solano County Named One of the Nation’s 100 Best Communities for Young People

Solano County Named One of the Nation’s 100 Best Communities for Young People by America’s Promise Alliance 1/24/2008

America’s Promise Alliance (the Alliance), the nation’s largest alliance dedicated to children and youth, in partnership with Capital One, today announced that Solano County has been named for the third consecutive year a winner of its 2008 100 Best Communities for Young People (100 Best) competition. The 100 Best competition recognizes the 100 outstanding communities across America—large and small, rural and urban—that are the best places for young people to live and grow up. More than 300 communities in all 50 states applied for the honor this year. The 100 winning communities span 37 states.

Solano County was selected as one of the 100 Best because of its collaborative approach to helping its young people. This year the award focused on the concerted efforts to reduce the use of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs. The hard-hitting presentations to middle school students by the Public Defender on the dangers of methamphetamines, a push to keep the at-risk youth involved in the Juvenile and Family Drug Courts in school and successful in their educational goals, and the efforts of the various community organizations and city-based teams exemplified the countywide efforts. Additionally, in keeping with their commitment that all kids have health insurance, a comprehensive health care coverage plan for kids who do not qualify for public programs has insured 96% of children in Solano County for the last five years.

“The prosperity of every community and this country depends on how well we care for our children and youth,” said Marguerite W. Kondracke, president and CEO, America’s Promise Alliance, “Although no place is perfect, when we have communities that make young people a priority and are working to make sure they stay in school and have all the resources necessary to lead healthy, productive lives, we must recognize them and by extension inspire other cities and towns to follow their lead.”

"At Capital One, we are committed to building stronger communities, one neighborhood at a time,” said Carolyn Berkowitz, Vice President of Community Affairs for Capital One. "That’s why we’re proud to partner with the Alliance on the 100 Best competition to recognize the tremendous work in communities across the country to create environments where children and families have boundless opportunities as well as the support systems necessary to champion their growth and encourage their success.”

The 100 Best competition was first held in 2005. This year’s winners were selected by a distinguished panel that included some of the nation’s most well-known civic, business and nonprofit leaders such as: Gayle Manchin, first lady of West Virginia, United Way President Brian Gallagher, former Mayor of Denver and President of Webb Group International, Wellington Webb, Thomas Donohue, president and CEO, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Carol Coletta, president and CEO, CEOs for Cities, Christine James-Brown, president and CEO, the Child Welfare League of America, and Dr. Suzanne Morse, executive director of the Pew Partnership for Civic Change.

“Solano County demonstrates on a daily basis what it takes to be a great community for our young people. Quite simply, we put our children first,” said Supervisor John Silva, Chairman of the Solano County Board of Supervisors. “This county is proud that our steadfast commitment to our youth has earned such esteemed national recognition for three consecutive years.”

All communities that completed entries in the 100 Best competition were required to submit detailed information to the Alliance on existing community programs and initiatives that help deliver the Five Promises—resources identified by America’s Promise as being critical to the development of healthy, successful children: caring adults; safe places; healthy start; effective education; and opportunities to help others; to their young people. Applicants were also asked to describe how different sectors of their community come together to deliver the Five Promises and specific efforts and programs developed to ensure that their young people graduate from high school prepared for college and/or the workforce. Each of these communities, regardless of whether they were selected as a winner, will be eligible to apply for $300,000 in grants from the Alliance next month.

For more details about the 100 Best competition and to see a complete list of the 2008 winners, please visit www.americaspromise.org.

Solano County & 100 Best Communities for Young People Facts

• Solano County has won for the third consecutive year and is the only community in California to claim that honor.

• Emphasis of the award application for 2008

Efforts to reduce the use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs

 Public Defender community outreach program for the last three years to present middle school students with a hard-hitting presentation on the dangers of using methamphetamines

 Public Defender efforts for the last four years with at-risk youth involved in Juvenile and Family Drug Courts, working to ensure the participants stay in school and are successful in their education goals

 Collaborative efforts of community organizations and city-based teams to combat alcohol, tobacco and other drug uses among children and youth

Increasing the availability of health insurance for children

 Sustained a rate of 96% of children insured for last five years

 Local community commitment to the Healthy Kids program, including a challenge by the Board of Supervisors to match dollar for dollar funds raised and the Solano Magazine Classic for Kids that generated over $193,000 in contributions from the community.
Collaborative approach to address youth issues

 First 5 Solano Children and Families Commission serves as a hub for coordinating, supporting and sponsoring collaborative efforts, including BabyFirst Solano that educates pregnant women to be drug and alcohol free, the Integrated Family Support Initiative that delivers services through community Family Resource Centers, and the School Readiness Program that integrates the diverse roles of children, schools and parents in the education process

• 2008 award builds upon the areas emphasized in 2007 and 2006

2007 – Education Focused

 Student academic performance improved across the county, as measured by the continued rise in the Academic Performance Index

 Schools were instrumental focal point to identifying students in need of health insurance, contributing to the one of the lowest uninsured rates among children in the state

 Diverse array of resources available county-wide for children and their families

 Innovative youth programs, such as the Boys and Girls Clubs

 Committed community participation to youth programs and initiatives

2006 – Health Focused

 Strong collaborative partnerships, such as the Solano Coalition for Better Health and the Children’s Alliance

 Progressive and innovative programs, such as the Integrated Family Support Initiative and the Universal Children’s Health Initiative

 Use of data and results accountability, such as the Solano Children’s Report Card published by the Children’s Network of Solano County

 Active participation by the Board of Supervisors and its partners such as First 5 Solano, Solano Coalition for Better Health, Children’s Network, Fighting Back Partnership and the Vacaville Youth Round Table to name a few