by Kimberly Sawatka | Feb 7, 2018
Since the 1970s the marriage rate has gone from 80 percent of adults being married down to 52 percent. This rapid decline in marriage has caused an upward spike in the number of single parents living in poverty. How do we as a community combat this negative spiral downwards? Helping to rebuild healthy marriages is a good first step.
Because of these shocking trends, the Healthy Families Initiative is participating in National Marriage Week which begins on February 7th and ends on Valentine’s Day.
The week is designed to shine a spotlight on the growing decline of marriages and help strengthen marriages and communities. The Healthy Families Initiative will host Love is a Choice, I Choose You, on February 10th, an evening for couples to renew their marriage vows and celebrate the joys of being married. This event will also be part of a Facebook campaign #LoveIsAChoice, which will be a week-long campaign of daily challenges to become more engaged in your marriage.
For centuries marriage has been the weapon of choice to combat poverty, and today it is still the best defense. In fact, marriage is so important to strengthening today’s society, that Governor Nathan Deal has declared the week National Marriage Week within the state of Georgia. Marriages build strong communities and happier people.
Marriage has financial gains
- Married men are more successful in work as well, getting promoted more often and receiving higher performance appraisals.
- As for women, married women earn up to 10% more than their single peers.
Married people live longer
- Single men have mortality rates that are 250% higher than married men.
- Single women have mortality rates that are 50% higher than married women.
Married people are mentally more healthy
- Married people report lower levels of depression and distress, and 40% say they are very happy with their lives, compared to about 25% in single people.
Married people have more sex
- About 40% of married people have sex twice a week, compared to 20-25% of single and cohabitating men and women.
Statistics are from The Case for Marriage Why Married People Are Happier, Healthier, and Better off Financially by Linda J. Waite and Maggie Gallagher.
For more information about strengthening your marriage and the FREE workshops that can help you accomplish your marriage goals, visit BuildMyBestRelationship.com.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Apr 24, 2017
In a recent project spearheaded by the Center of the American Experiment, Georgia Center for Opportunity’s President and CEO, Randy Hicks, tackled the one topic even politicians and religious leaders are shying away from – family fragmentation.
The written symposium “Was Trump and Clinton’s Campaign Silence Regarding Family Fragmentation Golden?” is a collaboration of thirty writers answering two questions.
1. “Was Trump and Clinton’s campaign silence regarding family fragmentation golden?
2. Or was it leaden, especially when it comes to reducing poverty, improving education, and reversing crime?”
Click here to see the full essay.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Jan 25, 2017
Jamie Lord, GCO’s Director of Government Affairs, has been on the air waves discussing the benefits of school choice with the team at The Morning Show with Bill and Joel.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Jan 12, 2017
GCO’s Director of Government Affairs discusses school choice in Georgia with Rusty Humphries, host of Trending Today USA.
For more information visit Georgia Parents Alliance or learn more through the GCO website.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Mar 29, 2016
Legislatures across the country have been discussing education reform for many years, specifically educational choice options. This year Georgia joined the conversation considering education savings accounts. Much of the dialogue is student centered – as it should be. However, there is one audience that is not often mentioned, but stands to gain a great deal from more school choice options in the state, and that is teachers.
As education options increase across the state, so do employment options for teachers. Public schools, private schools, charter schools, online schools and many more options exist, allowing teachers to thrive and use their creativity and passion for teaching in just the right environment. This is highly beneficial for students as well!
Public school teachers often spend more time on administrative tasks, than actually teaching in the classroom. A study by Alliance for Excellent Education found that approximately “half a million teachers either move or leave the profession each year.”
Florida is leading the nation in options for school choice, allowing teachers to use choice programs to open their own schools. Teacher run schools not only allow for an education model that tailors the curriculum to the students’ needs, but also allows teachers to maximize their expertise.
With a robust choice menu in Georgia, teachers would have more options than ever before to seek employment. Flexible work-from-home positions for online academies and higher teacher pay, are just two benefits of more choice programs. Choice also creates competition of free-market values among the profession so exceptional teachers will rise to the top and be rewarded.
