1) Over $40,000 committed for 2006, with a bunch of great proposals pending! Big thanks to the Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project, Jack J. Smith Charitable Trust, PNC Bank, N.A. and James S. Wachs, Co-Trustees, and several others that have committed since the last email!

2) We’re moving onto the first floor of our building! With 90 youth coming to Elementz every night, this should be a great upgrade. Plus now we’ve got a sweet board room and class rooms for new programming like our graffiti art class.

3) Some fantastic new Board members! Cincinnati City Councilman Christopher Smitherman has just agreed to join our Board, along with Peter Block and several other great people, including 2 youth representatives!

4) A fully overhauled database, an expanded website that’s getting a ton of hits (over 250 per week), and we’re using a great new project management software that’s increasing our efficiency and effectiveness.

5) We’ve recently become co-founders of a national organization called the New Progressive Coalition. You can check out the website HERE, but we aim to cross-connect progressive entrepreneurs, organizations, and investors to harness our true potential. We’re proud to be a part of this new initiative!

New Board Member Shiloh Maloney with Gavin Leonard at the awards ceremony for the J.E.Davis
Volunteer Leadership Award presented to us by the Greater Cincinnati Foundation last month

Finally, please take a second to fill in the information below and email it back to us. We’re working on our first paper newsletter and planning a great first year anniversary event for February 2006, so we’d like to be able to reach you in ways other than email!