In Youth Takeover Part 2, Community Engagement Manager Brandon Morris continues his discussions with 6 of the 11 students involved in BOF’s Youth Leadership Cohort. The students share their experiences and opinions on the Youth Town Hall School Board Candidate Forum held last month. Tune in to learn more about these remarkable high school students in Kenosha County.

In Part 2, you’ll hear from six students from Bradford, Tremper and Indian Trail High School & Academy representing the Junior and Senior Class: Marciara, Ben, Ariana, Jacob, Aniyah and Eric.

This week, we’re speaking with 5 of the 12 youth from BOF’s Youth Leadership Cohort to not only hear about who they are and their wins and challenges as high schoolers, but to also hear their take on the 3-month leadership cohort that is leading up to the Youth Town Hall School Board Candidate Forum.

In this lively episode you’ll hear from five students from Bradford and Indian Trail High School & Academy representing the Junior and Senior Class: Alana, Ariana, Mer, Aniyah, Ja'Nya.

Please join us in supporting our youth on Tuesday, March 29th, 6:30pm – 8pm at the Lincoln Middle School Auditorium; Doors will open at 6pm. Learn more here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1072799403450548?ref=newsfeed

Check out this month’s episode where you learn more about the people behind the work at Building Our Future.

You'll hear from Data Manager, Kevin Meagher, Director of Impact and Strategy, Lynn Debilzen, Community Engagement Manager, Brandon Morris, and Executive Director, Tatjana Bicanin as they share who they are personally, and highlights of the collaborative work to improve educational, economic, and social mobility outcomes for Kenosha County youth and families!

This week, we’re speaking with Dr. Jen Freiheit, Health Officer/Director for Kenosha County Public Health, Tamarra Coleman, Executive Director for Shalom Center and Kirsten Gundersen, Kenosha County Public Health Strategist for Kenosha County Public Health to hear about the evolution of the Kenosha County Health Equity Taskforce. They’ll share their wins, challenges, and learnings through their boots on the ground approach over the last 12 months.

Kirsten Gundersen, Kenosha County Public Health Strategist for Health Equity shares, “... as a Kenosha County Public Health entity, we learned a lot about how important it is to keep going back (to the underserved neighborhoods and small businesses) because that’s a part of building trust …. that’s a way to achieve systemic change.”

In episode nine of Together, We’re Better, Building Our Future Community Engagement Manager Brandon Morris hosts a conversation with Zander Miller (Kenosha Public Library Digital Strategy Librarian), Barb Brattin (Kenosha Public Library Director) and Cindy Fesemyer (State Library Consultant: Adult & Community Services) as they discuss the Wisconsin Libraries Transforming Communities cohort, a state-level community engagement training conducted by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's Division for Libraries and Technology in partnership with the American Library Association.

When asked how Building Our Future was identified as a partner for this project, Barb Brattin explains, “It was very clear if you know anything about Building Our Future, community engagement is a very large part of what they do. The partnership was already conducting the same community outreach around the topic of student success in our city, so it seemed like a natural fit to put these two organizations together.”

Today, we’re going to hear about the history of Building Our Future (BOF). Jean Moran, retired CEO of LMI Packaging, Todd Battle, president of Kenosha Area Business Alliance and Tatjana Bicanin, executive director of Building Our Future walk down memory lane on how Building Our Future became the first collective impact initiative in Kenosha County to address social and educational outcomes in Kenosha County.

Together, we’ll learn about the origin of Building Our Future and how the partnership has evolved over the past five years.

Learn more about BOF at buildingourfuturekc.org

In episode 7 of Together, We’re Better, Community Engagement Manager Brandon Morris talks with our local Parent Advocates and our partners from the Wisconsin Partnership – a collaborative effort of the four StriveTogether-affiliated local collective impact partnerships in Wisconsin, about how parents can lead change in their communities, specifically for early childhood care and education. 

One parent advocate, Ashley Wells, explains how the PACC Fellowship equipped her with the necessary skills to confidently speak with her elected representatives and inspire other parents to use their power as a parent to make changes.  

Parents Advocate for Child Care (PACC) Fellows: Ashley Wells, Genevieve Gerou and Patrick Langston

In episode six Together, We’re Better, Building Our Future Community Engagement Manager Brandon Morris hosts a conversation with Atifa Robinson, Luanne Rohde, Dr. Diane Gerlach and Lynn Debilzen as they discuss the Early Learning Nation Team which is efforts connected to a national movement. But locally, it is a three year action plan that is focused on creating a space for families and a community where early learning is truly at the center. 

Atifa Robinson (Community Strategist-Kenosha, UW School of Medicine and Public Health) expresses, “I wanted to be a part of the Early Learning Nation Cohort because the Early Learning Nation focuses on networking with community leaders, looking at neighborhood resources/barriers and improving policies to help children and families be successful…promoting a healthy community for all."

In the fifth episode of Together, We're Better, Brandon Morris hosts a conversation with the EquiTeens: Sophia Hysaw, Meredith Kaufmann and Alana Carmickle; three Seniors at Indian Trail High School Academy. In this conversation you will hear a range of topics -- virtual learning experience, vaccination for students, require or not require wearing a mask, communication within the schools, student curriculum and more! You'll want to listen to this 30-minutes of Why Young Voices Matters!