School Zone
United Way launches largest ever single-day recruitment drive
Innovative approach enlists 20 top businesses
and corporations for National Day of Action
On May 14 at Ft. Caroline Middle School, United Way of Northeast Florida announced its local plans to recruit mentors as part of a national call to action. On Saturday, June 21, United Ways across the nation will host a Day of Action highlighting the importance of volunteering and demonstrating the power of communities working together to advance the common good in the areas of education, income and health.
On the First Coast, United Way of Northeast Florida is taking an innovative approach to address the area’s high school dropout
rates. In partnership with the City of Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Children’s Commission, Duval County Public Schools, and the Mentor First Coast Task Force, United Way is launching a community mobilization effort to expand the network of volunteer mentors in Northeast Florida schools.
Building upon its longstanding relationships with corporate and business partners, United Way has invited local businesses, companies and organizations to recruit new mentors from their ranks on a scale as never before seen on the First Coast.
More than 20 businesses, including some of the region’s largest employers, have already stepped forward to lead internal mentor recruitment campaigns for the Day of Action with additional companies continuing to sign up each day.
United Way and its partners will make becoming a mentor easy by streamlining the application process. In a single day at one location, Hemming Plaza, prospective mentors can complete orientation, initial screening and basic mentor training sessions. In addition, volunteers can sign up to mentor at specific schools leading to fall-time mentor matches.
To further emphasize the importance of giving back to the community, United Way’s Day of Action will also include a community rally and festival on Hemming Plaza from noon to 3 p.m. with food and family-friendly activities.
The costs of dropping out ripples through the community in the form of increased crime and incarceration rates, greater dependence on public assistance and public healthcare, and lost tax revenue to support necessary education and public programs. Yet, research shows that one caring adult can have a positive, lasting impact in the life of a struggling student and can lead to improvements in attendance, behavior and academic performance in a relatively short period of time.
“Because of our urgent need to find reliable adult mentors for students, I am pleased that the focus of United Way’s mentor recruitment effort is school-based mentoring programs,” said Duval County
Public Schools Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals.
“Through the Jacksonville Journey initiative, we learned of United Way’s Day of Action and embraced the idea of a targeted, workplace and community-based mentor recruitment drive,” stated Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton. “It’s a crucial first step to close the gap on our mentor shortage, thereby reducing youth violence and helping students stay on track for graduation.”
The concerted effort aligns with goals set by Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton in the Jacksonville Journey initiative and Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals in the recently approved
DCPS Strategic Plan.
“We are so pleased that Mayor Peyton and the City of Jacksonville, School Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals and the Duval County Public Schools, and Mentor First Coast Task Force, a coalition of mentoring agencies, are partners with us to achieve this goal for our community’s students,” said Connie Hodges, President, United Way of Northeast Florida. “We are helping our youth move on the path toward success in academics and in life.”
The companies that will conduct internal recruitment drives include: Aetna Anheuser-Busch Bank of America; Baptist Health; Blue Cross Blue Shield; Citi; Duval County Public Schools; Enterprise Rent-A-Car; Florida Capital Bank; JEA; Presser, Lahnen & Edelman PA; Regency; Rogers Towers; Shands Jacksonville Medical Center; St. Vincent’s HealthCare; State Farm; U.S. Navy; University of North Florida; UPS; Wachovia; and Publix.
To learn more about United Way’s Day of Action and mentor recruitment, contact Michelle Speisman at 390-3228 or visit www.aboutunitedway.org. To become a mentor, call 390-2960.
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