On My Mind This Month… Reflecting on Our Leadership
As we roll deeper into 2017, and specifically as we pay tribute this month to Martin Luther King Jr., who emulated so many of the leadership characteristics that I personally aspire to, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the leadership that has been so critical to the development and sustainability of ACYI (Adams County Youth Initiative) and the Cradle to Career Partnership.
Our community, like so many others, is comprised of many individuals who work tirelessly to make it a great place for kids to grow up.
Those of you reading this blog are among the many, who I know contribute your time, talent and treasure to help move this work. You are each a part of a larger ecosystem and your efforts contribute to making our community what it is.
I reflect on the critical role you play in our community and especially in the ACYI Partnership. We here at ACYI have nothing but endless gratitude for all you do.
Our Founding Leaders
I think about our founding leaders who in 2005 began the difficult conversations regarding the high rates of delinquency and substance use among youth in Adams County. These leaders agreed to stop the “collable-bable” and to work together for better outcomes.
It took courage for these individual organizations and their leaders to set aside their own objectives to focus on a collective effort. To read more about significant outcomes produced by these efforts, Click Here.
Change Agents and Adaptive Leadership
I also reflect on the individuals whose adaptive leadership skills allowed them to serve as true change agents as ACYI adopted the StriveTogether collective impact framework with greater focus on academic outcomes.
In 2011, two years before the end of a grant period that funded the early work of ACYI, our leadership and partners realized that for the work of ACYI to continue, a separate organization would be needed to lead, manage, and support the work of the Initiative and its partners.
As a result, ACYI established an independent 501(c)(3) status in November 2011. ACYI transitioned fully to a 501(c)(3) on September 1, 2012.
National Leadership
I think about Jeff Edmondson, the Managing Director of StriveTogether, and his team who helped develop the national framework that ACYI is now a proud member of. The StriveTogether framework provides proven expertise, effective resources and a nationally recognized collective impact approach cradle to career. To read more about our framework, CLICK HERE.
Community Leaders’ Council
I think about the education, business, faith and civic leaders from across the region, who comprise our Community Leaders’ Council and who are responsible for advancing ACYI’s mission. These are the individuals who are holding steadfast to our vision and use their meaningful influence to help strategically direct resources to our Collective Action Networks (CANs) and Sites. For a list of our Community Leaders’ Council, CLICK HERE.
Board of Directors
I think about our Board of Directors, who are responsible for ensuring organizational effectiveness, providing leadership, and overseeing the activities of our organization. These are the individuals who hold the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that ACYI is achieving its charitable mission and using charitable resources according to legal and ethical requirements. These individuals provide strong, ongoing support to my team and me.
To meet our slate of 2017 Board of Directors, CLICK HERE.
In reflecting on leadership, there are three individuals who I would specifically like to mention and thank: Kevin West, 27J Director of Intervention, Matt Gray, Colorado State Representative, and Russ Van Houten, former Chief of Police for the City of Northglenn for their service on our Board of Directors. These individuals have played an integral role in the development and sustainability of ACYI.
Although their terms have ended on our Board of Directors, I look forward to continuing to work with them through our Community Leaders’ Council.
Results Based Leadership
And last, but certainly not least, I think about the Results Based Leadership (RBL) approach that my team and I will be using in our work moving forward. Pioneered by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, RBL provides Cradle to Career Partnerships like ours, with the tools and techniques to support community partners as they work collaboratively to make changes that will produce measurable results for each community-level outcome.
Our team has been trained on RBL and will soon be adding Results Based Facilitation (RBF) to our toolbox. Watch for RBL and RBF to be infused into our work in the near future. We think you will like it!
On a Final Note
A friend in this business once said to me that a high functioning non-profit has old and new faces. We have both…strong, seasoned leadership and new fresh perspective. This, coupled with a steadfast focus on Cradle to Career success for our youth, fuels my excitement for all that is to come.
Until next time,
Becky Hoffman
Executive Director
Adams County Youth Initiative
About Becky
In her position as the Executive Director 
of the Adams County Youth Initiative (ACYI), Becky has led a collective impact collaborative with over 75 organizations, who are committed to the academic success of over 100,000 students. Becky provided key leadership in transitioning ACYI from an unincorporated federally funded grant to a standalone non-profit adopting the proven national framework, called StriveTogether. READ MORE
About Becky’s Blog
Becky shares her thoughts and insights to anything and everything related to the Cradle to Career movement. In addition, watch for occasional guest blogs from other local and national content experts.
