The first year of a three-plan focuses on 16 markets across the U.S.
Over the weekend of Sept. 11-12, select volunteer leads from 16 of our Associate Board of Ambassadors (ABOA) chapters and ACS staff from across the nation met face-to-face in Chicago, home of our largest ABOA chapter with 150 members. (Our ABOA program is now the official name for our young professional groups for people ages 22-35.)
Attendees participated in strategy discussions about board development, structure, and design, and they were challenged to think beyond a single revenue event and get more involved in year-round recruitment and our mission.
This group of volunteers, known as Cohort 1, represented 16 target market areas: Anchorage, Austin, Boston, Broward County (Fla.), Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Jackson, Miami, Nashville, New Orleans, Palm Beach, Philadelphia, Seattle, and Tampa. They are being led by volunteer Adam Schlesinger, national chair, ABOA, and Brad Wisdom, our director of youth and young professional engagement. We are forming a national ABOA board now that will be led by Adam.
Engaging young professionals in our mission is a priority. There are nearly 49 million Americans ages 22 - 35, and 43% of young professionals contribute to health-related charity causes at least once a year, and health causes are the number one cause supported by young professionals.
Chicago was chosen as the venue so attendees could experience that chapter's Skyline Soiree. In its 14 years, the event has raised $3 million for ACS. It is the largest ACS young professional event in the country, bringing together more than 700 people.
The markets chosen for Cohort 1 either have established chapters with events and boards already in place, or are new or revamped chapters that show great promise. In year two and three of this plan, we will add brand new markets.
PHOTO: Pictured in the front row, all the way to the right is Brad Wisdom. Adam is in the back row, third from left, in the light blue suit.
*Shared from MySocietySource.
No comments:
Post a Comment