New Haven Named National Civic League 2022 All-America City Winner

NEW HAVEN, CT — The National Civic League has named New Haven as one of 10 All-America City award winners.

The National Civic League, along with co-convener the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, presented this honor to recognize New Haven's commitment to cross-sector collaboration; meaningful partnerships with public housing agencies and affordable-housing organizations; data-based solutions; and equity, including racial equity.

"We are happy to designate New Haven as an All-America City," National Civic League president Doug Linkhart said. "They showed, even in the face of a global pandemic, that they can bring people together to help kids and families thrive."

Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of New Haven accepted the award on behalf of the City of New Haven and in recognition of the organization’s ECC Believes initiative.

“We’re so proud in the Elm City of the way we wrap around our young people for their academic success,” Elm City Communities executive director Karen DuBois-Walton said. “On behalf of our Mayor Justin Elicker and the 135,000 residents of the Elm City, we are so thrilled to accept this award as an acknowledgment of the vital and necessary work happening across the city to support our young people.”

Since 1949, the National Civic League has recognized and celebrated the best in American civic innovation with the prestigious All-America City Award. This year, the All-America City Awards focused on “Housing as a Platform to Promote Early School Success and Equitable Learning Recovery.” Elm City Communities, which provides housing support to one-third of all New Haven Public School students, showcased the work and success of the organization’s ECC Believes initiative alongside community partners and residents.

"Elm Cities Communities has always gone above and beyond in support of the families and individuals it serves by providing an array of supportive services that extend well beyond just providing housing,” Elicker said. "With ECC Believes, agency leaders recognized a need, then developed partnerships and a wraparound strategy to identify, quantify, and address those needs. I’m so thrilled to see ECC acknowledged in this way for their effort and held up as a model community by the National Civic League. Congratulations."

ECC Believes is a coordinated effort to support children and youth’s positive social-emotional and educational development geared toward developing self-sufficient adults.

“When the city began its education reform work, we knew we needed to play a role because we knew that the children we served needed disproportionate attention,” DuBois-Walton said. “Through our programs, we have unique access to the young people we serve, and a unique ability to support them and their families.”

ECC Believes encompasses 26 community partners, including eight different city and state departments, serving nearly 600 total young people in ECC developments.

“ECC Believes is structured as a hub for partnerships with individuals and organizations within the agency and across the city to ensure our young people have access to necessary supports,” said Latoya Mills, Director of Community Economic Development at Elm City Communities. “The programs and partnerships we’ve chosen have been rooted in both data and community engagement.”

ECC was joined by ECC Believes community partners Leiyanie "Lee" Osorio, a Program Manager with Leadership, Education, & Athletics in Partnership, Inc, (LEAP), Kathy Jennings, Director of the Mentoring Program for Bridges of Hope, and Dennis Yacono, Program Tutor for Elm City Communities’ partnership with ACES Wintergreen, a local magnet school.

“Early intervention is key and the partnership between community, school, and family is paramount. It is this triangular bond that this very program seeks to strengthen,” said Dennis Yacono, a Program Tutor for Elm City Community’s partnership with ACES Wintergreen. “Year after year, our students continue to reap the rewards of this collaborative effort.”

View the All-America City Awards here. (The presentation of the AAC award to ECC begins at the 29:10 mark). View Elm City Communities presentation here. (ECC’s presentation begins at the 30:50 mark)

To learn more about ECC/HANH and ECC Believes visit www.elmcitycommunities.org.