City-Anchor Partners Leverage Assets to Improve Health

Wednesday, July 11, 2018 (2:00 to 3:00 pm ET) – Register here

City leaders and anchor partners from Columbus and Memphis are leveraging local assets to improve factors that affect health.  Healthy Homes in Columbus and the Memphis Medical District Collaborate are increasing affordable housing, catalyzing community development, adding jobs, improving workforce development, and spurring neighborhood-centered planning and design.  This Culture of Health web forum is the second in a series co-sponsored by NLC and Marga, Incorporated.

Speakers:

• Hannah Jones – Deputy Director of Community Development, City of Columbus, OH
• Doug McGowen – Chief Operating Officer, City of Memphis, TN
• Tommy Pacello – President, Memphis Medical District Collaborative
• Gretchen West – Exec Director, Healthy Homes, Columbus, OH

Invitation to Join

Cities of Opportunity: Healthy People, Thriving Communities
To harness the power of city leadership to address social determinants of health, the National League of Cities (NLC) is piloting Cities of Opportunity, which offers an agenda for action that seeks to improve the health and well-being of city residents. Through the pilot, NLC will help city leaders develop and implement robust, integrated action plans for their communities that are informed by peer learning and engagement with national experts. Learn more.

A skilled and educated workforce is increasingly vital to a community’s economic vitality. Even when city officials do not play a direct role in governing their school systems, there are numerous ways in which they can exercise leadership to support public schools, expand alternatives for students who struggle in traditional educational settings, increase high school graduation rates, and promote college access and completion.  

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Mayors and city leaders play a pivotal role in the overall health and well-being of the cities and towns they serve. With generous support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), the Institute for Youth, Education, and Families at the National League of Cities (NLC) is leading an effort to educate, train and build the capacity of city leaders to address the social determinants of health and improve health outcomes where individuals live, learn, work and play.  From seeding promising practices and innovative approaches to leading cross-sector initiatives, NLC will engage mayors and city leaders in problem-solving sessions, trainings and peer-learning networks to ensure health is a key factor in their decisions across a range of issues, including education, early childhood, housing, land use, transportation and community development.

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NLC supports and informs city leaders and stakeholders interested in improving public safety and reforming the juvenile justice system. We also provide peer learning and support to the growing number of citywide programs reconnecting young people to school.

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Research shows a critical period of child development is birth to age 8, not just physiologically, but also cognitively, emotionally, and socially, setting the basis for future health and wellbeing. Children are cities’ future and city leaders are well positioned to champion the needs of young children and families. NLC is working with city leaders to align early childhood systems, improve quality and access, ensure every child enters school ready to learn, and ultimately reaches their full potential.

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City leaders can help families and neighborhoods become more economically secure by connecting children and families to public benefits and helping families learn financial skills, save for emergencies and the future and invest in assets that generate wealth and income.

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The Strong Southern Communities Initiative is designed to provide practical help and advice to municipal leaders in Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana. It brings together local elected officials from across the region who want to improve outcomes for children and families, enabling them to share ideas and discuss the challenges facing their communities.

In addition, SSCI helps participating mayors and city councilmembers develop local action plans based on their unique circumstances and needs, and then connects city leaders to national experts and regional partners who can help them implement those plans.

Click here to read more about the Strong Southern Communities Initiative and sign the pledge form.