The story of StriveTogether began on a bridge.<\/p>\n
In August 2006, leaders from three communities met in the middle of the Newport South Bank Bridge, known locally as the Purple People Bridge, which spans the Ohio River between Cincinnati, Ohio, and northern Kentucky.<\/p>\n
I was there as the event kicked off a regional partnership to improve outcomes for kids. It was amazing to see so many different people \u2014 school district leaders and college presidents, foundation and nonprofit executive directors, corporate CEOs and elected officials \u2014 come together. After that symbolic launch, we quickly got to work on an approach that would eventually become known as collective impact<\/a>. Using this approach, we organized everyone around a common vision, focused on community assets instead of deficits and used data as a tool for collaboration.<\/p>\n That cross-sector effort still exists today and is known as StrivePartnership. And StriveTogether, started by several of the original leaders, including myself, now supports 70 communities across the country with the mission of helping 10.5 million kids succeed.<\/p>\n Over the years, we\u2019ve revised and evolved our approach, distinguishing our own brand of quality collective impact. We\u2019ve done this a few times based on lessons from partnerships in the StriveTogether Cradle to Career Network. So many systems impact young people from cradle to career, and our job is to make them all work better together. That\u2019s why our new strategic plan has the goal of helping 24 communities strengthen and align the multitude of systems \u2014 like education, health care, housing and transportation \u2014 that shape opportunity for kids in America.<\/p>\n
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