Family Connection-Communities In Schools of Athens: Some of our results . . .
One of our early priorities was addressing teen pregnancy. The teen pregnancy rate has decreased by 65%:
“The most effective crime prevention work in Athens has been Family Connection’s work to reduce teen pregnancy.”
– Police Chief Jack Lumpkin
In 1999, a multi-month process we convened culminated in a two-day conference on reducing child abuse & neglect in Athens; 192 community members participated, and 15 initiatives grew out of it. We have subsequently seen an 87% reduction in substantiated abuse and neglect. After a few years of success here, the state adopted several of our local policies, contributing to a statewide reduction of 65%.
Clarke County students have achieved the largest reduction in the achievement gap of any school district in Georgia, with all subgroups improving significantly.
