Paid Family Leave Discussion – Establishing Healthy Lifelong Attachments

by David Bass | Jan 24, 2020

Paid Family Leave Discussion – Establishing Healthy Lifelong Attachments

We know that healthy relationships and successful family formation are crucial to walking the steps of the Success Sequence. Strong families help individuals and children flourish. And we know that time with children, especially in their early years, is crucial to establishing healthy lifelong attachments.

The tougher question is how to foster these things from a policy standpoint.

At Georgia Center for Opportunity (GCO), we’ve come to realize that paid family leave is an important part of the puzzle—especially for low-income and impoverished Georgians.

For these reasons and many more, GCO hosted a discussion at Georgia Tech in mid-January dedicated to exploring options for a paid family leave policy.

Watch the video below for more.

Three ways that Georgia lawmakers can immediately help the impoverished

by David Bass | Jan 24, 2020

Three ways that Georgia lawmakers can immediately help the impoverished

Georgia lawmakers are back in town, kicking off the 40-day 2020 session on Monday. While the General Assembly is set to consider a range of issues—tax cuts, OK’ing the state’s budget, healthcare, and more—here are some immediate ways that lawmakers can help those in poverty:

Expand educational access

One crucial way to help those in poverty is to ensure the cycle doesn’t repeat in the next generation. Today in Georgia, too many schools are failing to properly prepare children for the next phase of life, and without high-quality education options the dropout rates will continue to rise and cycles of poverty will never be broken.

The statistics are alarming: More than 1 in 5 young adults in Georgia are not attending school, not working, and have no degree beyond high school. Additionally, around 20 percent of students do not graduate from high school on time.

For these reasons and more, lawmakers should expand educational access in Georgia by passing Educational Scholarship Accounts (ESAs). This will build on the solid foundation created in recent years through the Tax Credit Scholarship Program, the Special Needs Scholarship Program, and expansion of charter schools in our state. Already, over 250,000 children in Georgia benefit through these schools and programs. That trend must and will continue.

We also realize that most Georgia families will continue to enroll their children in their locally zoned public schools. And we must continue ensuring that traditional public schools are properly funded and supported. Ultimately, we should empower all families to make the best choice possible in where and how to educate their children.

Help people find work and bolster the safety net

More than half-a-million Georgians are unemployed or unable to find full-time employment. Many of these individuals are ready to flourish if given the opportunity.

We can see change through on-the-ground partnerships that train impoverished Georgians for in-demand jobs; welfare reform that rewards work rather than punishes it; and prison reform that helps former inmates find support, work, and stability after transitioning from behind bars.

Strengthen families

People from all walks of life are more likely to flourish if they enjoy strong relationships and a healthy family life. But here in Georgia, our state is experiencing troubling trends in a number of areas: marriage rates continue to decline, and child births outside of marriage have become the norm. While these trends cost taxpayers over $100 billion annually, the costs in terms of human suffering are immeasurable.

Lawmakers returning to the Gold Dome this week should create a tax code that doesn’t unfairly penalize marriage and, instead, one that encourages long-lasting, healthy relationships.

Joyce Mayberry Leads In New Role As Vice President of Family Formation

by Corey Burres | Jan 14, 2020

Joyce Mayberry Leads In New Role As Vice President of Family Formation

Joyce Mayberry will be moving into a new role as the Vice President of Family Formation. In this position, Joyce will continue to develop new ways to strengthen families in the communities we serve through our many partners.

This move in position reinforces three primary pillars of the Georgia Center for Opportunity (GCO) team – opportunity for high-quality education, meaningful work, and healthy families. Family formation is an important foundation for ensuring we can maximize the chances of someone charting a path out of poverty.

Joyce has served the GCO community for the past two decades, becoming a well-respected leader on family relationship resources. . Organizationally, she brings a powerful passion to better assist and train individuals on healthy relationships.

“I am excited about my new role as Vice President of Family Formation,” stated Joyce about this new alignment.” There is power in numbers and together we can help enhance and empower the well-being of family members.”

Through collaboration with recent new partners, Joyce will work to streamline our family education efforts and continue to champion our invaluable partners.

This change will help GCO successfully set up pathways for those stuck in the cycles of poverty. It is through this renewed vision that we hope to bring new opportunities and break down barriers in 2020.

Forming A Family – The importance of exploring paid family leave

by Corey Burres | Jan 10, 2020

Forming A Family – The importance of exploring paid family leave

Family formation is a cornerstone step in the success sequence. It also is a difficult topic to address. We know family is important to upward mobility and opportunity, but how do we foster it? One initiative being discussed, even at a national level, is paid family leave.

Why Time Together Matters

family on vacation in the ocean Recently I took the family on a vacation. We slept in a hotel room with beds mere feet from each other, shared street-vendor meals, crammed into a small vehicle and drove hours together, and walked miles side-by-side for seven straight days.

When we came home, we were tired, smelly and done being with each other. Each child (and adult) immediately found their own room and spent some much needed alone time. Since then, however, we have spent more time hanging out and talking. Less time on our phones and more time just being together. But why?

Because even for an introvert like myself, connection with each other and the bonds of a family are strengthened by proximity.

Time Together Establishes Healthy Relational Bonds

These bonds are even more important at a young age. Time with our children, especially in their infancy, is important to establishing lifelong healthy attachments. These healthy relationships will be the basis for family formation in a child’s life.

That is why we are taking the lead on the discussion of paid family leave. Creating an open dialogue that outlines, not just the importance, but the manner in which we institute such a system is vital to the support of stronger families. The U.S. is one of the only first-world nations that has not addressed this issue at a policy level.

The issue is particularly impactful to the stability and formation for families in lower income areas. It is why Georgians and the Georgia Center for Opportunity must take the lead on guiding conversations on this.

Join us for our discussion on this important subject
next week at GA Tech!

Creating healthy relationships, one man at a time

by David Bass | Dec 9, 2019

Creating healthy relationships, one man at a time

“Family is not an important thing.
It’s everything.”

MICHAEL J. FOX

Those words of wisdom from Michael J. Fox reflect a core reality about us as human beings. We long for meaningful connections. But in a culture where families are ripped apart, and loneliness and addiction are rampant, so many of our neighbors know nothing of the warmth, joy, and assurance of healthy relationships and a stable home life.

No longer Bound sign That’s why Georgia Center for Opportunity is partnering with organizations like No Longer Bound, an Atlanta-based organization that enrolls men in a 12-month residential regeneration process to rescue addicts, regenerate men, and rescue families. Men who go through the program resolve wounds from their past, repair damaged belief systems, restore relationship health, and receive a new identity.

Partnership with GCO

Staff at No Longer Bound noticed that men often came into their program with a history of broken romantic relationships. These men are eager to learn better ways to manage their relationships and earnestly want to become better husbands and fathers. Learning to identify a healthy partner and how to appropriately pace relationship development is a building block to supporting long-term recovery work.

A group photo with No Longer Bound staff

As a result, GCO’s Healthy Families Initiative provided a healthy relationship curriculum to No Longer Bound to help their men improve their relationship skills.

Positive feedback

The curriculum and class led to positive feedback from the men who participated, like these:

“The class has given me tools to use and concentrate on while starting to date my wonderful girlfriend of 13+ years again.”

“The class put certain things in perspective for me.”

“It made me more conscientious of the dating process and how to respectfully court a lady.”

“The class gave me a more introspective way to view how relationships work. For the majority of my life, I’ve realized that it was all about the other person and how they could change me. But it’s just the opposite—it’s completely about changing my inner self. That translates to a lasting relationship.”

“The class helped me look inward and identify what kind of woman I want. Also what kind of man I want to be.”

More about HFI

If you want to discover ways you can help your neighbors find relational stability and a healthy family life, HFI is here to partner with you. HFI is a community-based program that joins with local churches, nonprofits, schools, and businesses to help people from all walks of life enjoy healthy, intact families and strong relationships. Click here for more.

The Little Things: Keeping Perspective On Thanksgiving

by Corey Burres | Nov 25, 2019

The Little Things: Keeping Perspective On Thanksgiving

Like many of you, this Thanksgiving our family will sit around a large table filled with decorations, turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, that odd jello that your distant aunt insists on bringing, and those that we love. At some point, someone will clang a glass to announce a few things they are thankful for. Others will join in, prayers will be said, and then we will converge into a moment of gorging ourselves on the bountiful blessings in front of us.

It’s a picture that will be repeated in many family homes across the country as we come together this Thanksgiving day.

These moments of reflection help us keep perspective on our lives, but also on the lives of others. We still live in a nation where nearly 49 million people are in poverty, including almost 14 million children. Their Thanksgiving dinner will likely be much different than our own.

The point of mentioning that is not to make anyone feel guilty, but rather to bring understanding and perspective on the blessings and responsibilities we do have. The truth is that we do not all face the same obstacles or opportunities in life.

Thanksgiving is a unique time for us to reflect on the opportunities we do have. Many of us, but not all, have had the opportunity to take advantage of a good education, a good job, and even a supportive family structure. These seemingly small things have helped set us up for success.

As you sit down this year and enjoy the time with family, dinner, and even the jello, remember the small things which brought you to this moment. Reflect on the opportunities afforded to you. And consider those less fortunate who are still waiting for their “little things” to arrive.

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