2014 All-America City Award Application

Deadlines:

September 2013-February 2014: Monthly conference callsNovember 15, 2013: Submit Letter of Intent to Apply (Save $100 on your application fee when you submit a Letter of Intent to Apply by November 15, 2013!)March 18, 2014: Submit ApplicationApril 2014: Finalists Announced. Finalist community delegations will be invited to Denver to present. June 2014: Peer-Learning Workshops & Awards Presentation/Competition in Denver, Colorado

Application Guidelines:

The All-America City Award (with a spotlight on Healthy Communities)The National Civic League invites you to apply for America’s oldest and most recognized community award, now in its 65rd year.

The All-America City Award recognizes ten communities annually for outstanding civic impact and action planning. Winning applicants demonstrate innovation, inclusiveness, civic engagement, and cross sector collaboration by describing successful efforts to address pressing local challenges. For this year, 2014, NCL is pleased to announce a spotlight on healthy communities. We are marking the 25 th anniversary of the beginning of the national healthy communities’ movement; National Civic League has been a long-time leader in building healthy community capacity. The healthy communities spotlight includes programs that promote walking, biking, moving, anti-obesity, youth and adult programs, healthy eating, play, and health promotion and disease prevention, among others. Applicants are asked to provide a healthy communities program in the application.

A youth member of a finalist community is also recognized with the AAC Youth Award. Nominations for this award will be requested after finalists are announced.

Community InformationCommunity name and state: Brownsville, Texas Your community is applying as a:___ Neighborhood ____ Village ___ Town √ City ___ County ___ RegionIf applying as a region, name participating communities: N/AIf applying as a neighborhood, name city: N/AHas your community applied before? Yes No If Yes, which years: 2001Has your community been a Finalist before? Yes No If Yes, which years: 2001Has your community been an All-America City before? Yes No If Yes, which years: 2001

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Contact InformationAll-America City Award contact (primary contact person available throughout competition & follow-up):Name: Arturo Rodriguez Title (if any): Public Health Director

Organization/Government/Other: City of Brownsville

Address: City Plaza, 1034 E. Levee Street, 2 nd Floor City, State, Zip Brownsville, Texas 78520

Phone (business/day): 956.542.3437 Mobile Phone 956.459.7728

E-mail Address (es): art.rodriguez@cob.us

The applying community will receive a complimentary membership (or membership renewal if an AAC application was submitted last year) to the National Civic League for one year. To whom should this membership be directed?

Name Charlie Cabler, City Manager

Address: City Hall, 1001 E. Elizabeth Street

City, State, Zip Brownsville, Texas 78520

Phone Number 956.548.6007 Fax 956.546.4021

Email charlie@cob.us

Community Statistics and MapNote: Use the most up-to-date statistics possible for your neighborhood, town, city, county, or region (source suggestions: U.S. Census

Bureau, State Department of Economic Security, State Department of Finance, Department of Public Health, and local school statistics).

POPULATION (in year 2010 or most recent): 180,097 (2012 Estimate)Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

POPULATION PERCENTAGE CHANGE 2000-2010 (indicate + or -): +25%Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

RACIAL/ETHNIC POPULATION BREAKDOWN:White 91.2% (2008-2012)Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 93.5% (2008-2012)Black or African American 0.6% (2008-2012)Asian 0.9% (2008-2012)American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) 0.3% (2008-2012)Mixed Race 1.1% (2008-2012)Other 7.0% (2008-2012)

Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME: $31,605 (2008-2012)

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Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

PERCENTAGE OF FAMILIES BELOW POVERTY LEVEL: 34.5% (2008-2012)Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE: 10.2%Source/Date: /March 11, 2013

POPULATION BREAKDOWN BY AGE GROUP (percentages, if available):19 years old and under 37.6% (2008-2012)20-24 7.1% (2008-2012)25-44 26.6% (2008-2012)45-64 19.1% (2008-2012)65 and over 9.5% (2008-2012)

Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

PERCENTAGE OF HOME OWNERSHIP: 62.5 % (2008-2012)Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION -- Name the three largest employment sectors (include military services and/or installations, if any) in your community and provide the percentage of total employed in each:

Educational services, and health care and social assistance 30.5% (2008-2012)Retail Trade 13.9% (2008-2012)Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation and food services 8.8% (2008-2012)

Source/Date: U.S. Census/March 11, 2013

MAP -- Please attach a state map (8.5” x 11”) with your community clearly marked.

ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARDS CRITERIA

Civic Engagement and Collaboration: comprehensive citizen/resident engagement in decision-making and action planning, cross-sector collaboration (business, local government, nonprofits, military, etc.) and regional collaboration.

Inclusiveness and Diversity: recognition and involvement of diverse segments and perspectives (ethnic, racial, socio-economic, age, sexual orientation, gender expression, people with disabilities, and others) in community decision-making.

Innovation: creative use and leveraging of community resources.

Impact: demonstrable significant and measurable achievements in the past 5 years (for example: dollars raised, jobs created or lives impacted), particularly in projects that address the community’s greatest challenges.

Resources Available to You

As you fill out this application, it may be helpful to consult the following publications:

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1. For questions to help evaluate your civic infrastructure--NCL’s Civic Index. Ask for a free copy! AAC@ncl.org

2. To help identify associations and their impact in your community--New Community Tools for Improving Child Health: A Pediatrician’s Guide to Local Associations. (Provided by permission of co-author John McKnight) http://www.abcdinstitute.org/docs/Pediatricians.pdf

3. For an asset-based framework--Discovering Community Power: A Guide to Mobilizing Local Assets and Your Organization’s Capacity. (Provided by permission of co-author John McKnight) http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/images/kelloggabcd.pdf

PART I: TELL YOUR COMMUNITY’S STORYSection A: Tell us your community’s story. Focus on the last ten years of your community’s progress and development. Utilizing the awards criteria (above) describe how your community addresses its pressing challenges and plans for its future. How are citizens/residents involved in planning and implementation? Provide examples of cross sector collaboration among the neighborhoods, government, businesses, and nonprofit organizations engaged in these efforts. How is the community illustrating diversity and inclusiveness? What is your community’s vision? Include real examples of how your community has demonstrated its strengths, innovations, and faced its challenges. Don’t forget to tell us about the people in your community. (2,000 word maximum)

“On the border, by the sea”, the City of Brownsville a historic city founded in 1848 by Charles Stillman and named after Major Jacob Brown, who was killed in our city during the opening days of the Mexican American war. It lies on the southernmost tip of Texas, straddling the meandering Rio Grande River, which serves as the U.S.-Mexico border. It is a semi-tropical paradise where two cultures meet creating a fusion of unique land of exotic flavors and natural beauty found nowhere else in the US. The city sits near the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico resting on 25 oxbow lakes (resaca’s) within walking distance to Mexico and a short drive to South Padre Island.

Unique to Brownsville are our resaca networks that traverse the city. The resacas, old distributaries of the Rio Grande River, are perhaps the most unique environmental asset of the community; and, they now serve several vital functions including: natural habitat for aquatic, avian and terrestrial species, aesthetics, local storm water detention, temperature moderation, and irrigation water transfer mechanisms for area farming operations.

The natural aesthetics of the resaca systems make them a desirable place to live. A sought after place for cultural and recreational amenities such as parks and tourist centers. This network of waterways has been underutilized water quality, native habitat preservation, ecotourism potential, storm water management, view shed management, and their entertainment value and potential.

The sprawling City of Brownsville is one of the most ecologically unique regions in the country, containing various biological communities exhibiting characteristics from a variety of biomes that can be found within a few hundred miles of the region including: desert, coastal, temperate, sub-tropical and tropical zones. Our area plays home to a vast variety of migratory birds. The Audubon society operates a local bird sanctuary and has counted to date sightings of over 500 bird species in the area. Brownsville is nationally recognized for its world birding center and the surrounding state and federal wildlife conservations. The Gladys Porter Zoo and botanical park that sits on 31 acres and opened its doors in 1971 is home to 400 species, 47 considered endangered, including two wild cats the Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) and the Jagurandi (Puma yagouaroundi).

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It is nationally recognized and was a recipient of the 1979 Texas Building Branch of Associated General Contractors Outstanding Construction Award for its naturalistic exhibits. Our zoo continues to expand and on September 28, 2014 the Russell Aquatic Ecology Center was launched. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5X8-YKOVQs

In addition to its beauty, the history of Brownsville is also extremely significant; Brownsville has served as a site for several battles and turning points in the Texas Revolution (1835-1836), Mexican-American War (1846-1848), and finally the American Civil War (1861-1865). The Brownsville community boasts a unique and vibrant culture that incorporates the multicultural richness of centuries-old Mexican and U.S. traditions including language, food, art and family ties. Our attractive, semi-tropical climate, abundant wildlife and natural splendor, proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, First-Class Deepwater Port of Brownsville, and relatively cheap land supporting year-round agriculture, attracts business, tourism and visitors to our city, from both the U.S. and Mexico.

Brownsville is the 16th largest city in Texas and recently ranked the poorest metropolitan area in the nation (U.S. News and World Report, 2013); nevertheless, it shares the same explosive population growth that the region experiences. In the past, population growth came as a result of immigration and high birth rates. Today, that population growth can also be attributed to economic development. Industry Week Magazine has recently recognized Brownsville as the sixth fastest growing manufacturing region in the United States. The subsequent explosion of population growth – approximately twenty-five percent between 2000 and 2010 has initiated an urban sprawl.

Our greatest assets are our citizens! A visitor to our city can expect to find our citizens to be multi-cultural, most likely to be bilingual in both English and Spanish, young, vibrant, eager and the friendliest in Texas. The year round weather allows friends and families to spend much time outdoors enjoying our ever growing number of parks and trails.

We are a fast growing community that is over ninety percent Hispanic of Mexican American ancestry with a median family income sixty-three percent below the Texas level and sixty-eight percent below the national level. While other cities and counties have pockets or neighborhoods of poor, unhealthy residents, approximately thirty-five percent of our community lives below the federal poverty level – numerous living in substandard housing, commonly referred to as colonias, more often one may find several families living in a single shack.

However, in spite of issues that have plagued our community for decades on end, Brownsville has many positive qualities and has taken the high road by joining efforts in the past few years, capitalizing on its resources and working diligently to solve community issues through effective cross-sectional collaboration-thereby increasing the quality of life for residents and visitors alike.

Many of Brownsville’s residents are not healthy. Over half of our population has little or no access to healthcare, and suffers from costly chronic disease rates some of the highest in the nation. In addition, countless fast-food restaurants offer low-priced, unhealthy options adding to our challenge and ongoing efforts to offer inexpensive fresh produce at farmers markets and community gardens throughout the city; a sustaining impetus toward improving health, and improving the quality of life.

Consequentially, the city of Brownsville’s greatest challenges are high rates of obesity and diabetes in the U.S. measured obesity in Brownsville is forty-nine percent among adults (Fisher-Hoch, et al. 2012).

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Further, thirty percent of fourth graders in our public health region are obese (Hoelscher, et al. 2010); community members over 18 years old in Brownsville, thirty-one percent suffer from diabetes with half of those individuals going untreated (Fisher-Hoch, et al. 2010).http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laoYWsjudRA

In 2008 the nation was hit with a historical recession and our region sensed the impact the following year with unemployment rates plummeting from 6.95% in 2008 to 10.30% the following year remaining as high 12.5 percent (DailyFinance.com; “America’s Poorest Cities”).

Facing this stark future, a diverse group of community leaders from private, public and non-profit sectors came together to imagine a better Brownsville by collaborating their grassroots efforts to meet their residents’ needs and mobilize change regarding health, education and the environment. In the mid 2000’s, Brownsville set in motion a new visioning process called Imagine Brownsville – a comprehensive community-planning effort – to define a healthier vision for the future of our region. Over 3,000 citizens participated in this community planning process. The result was a Texas (American Planning Association) 2009 award-winning document that guided decision-making and long-range planning called the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan.

The Comprehensive Plan, adopted on July 21, 2009 by the Brownsville City Commission, led to the creation of twelve vision themes:

(1) a PROSPEROUS community with low poverty rates based on targeted industrial clusters that offer good jobs paying livable wages and offer sustainable employment opportunities for future generations; (2) an EFFICIENT community with a public sector that provides high quality levels of services and competitive tax rates; (3) a FUNCTIONING and MOBILE community with efficient and well maintained infrastructure (streets, drainage, utilities, telecommunication) systems that support economic development and provide high levels of service at competitive rates; (4) a SAFE and PREPARED community with adequate police, fire, EMS and Emergency Response personnel and equipment; (5) a TALENTED community with a critical mass of individuals with high levels of educational attainment and workforce skills; (6) a HEALTHY community with low disease rates and affordable access to health care with a focus on prevention; (7) a VIBRANT community with a revitalized downtown core that provides a strong sense of place, preserves its historic resources and provides diverse arts and cultural entertainment venues; (8) a LIVABLE community with neighborhoods that preserve open spaces and promote parks, walking/bike trails and walkable, pedestrian-friendly streets; (9) an ENGAGED community of civically minded individuals that supports and mentors qualified leaders; (10) a COLLABORATIVE community with strong institutions that work cooperatively toward the community’s vision; (11) an EQUITABLE community whose residents enjoy fair and non-discriminatory access to quality of life and economic development benefits uniformly throughout the City; and (12) a SUSTAINABLE (GREEN) community that protects and maintains its environmental resources and promotes environmental awareness and responsible resource use and recycling.

The visions set forth in Imagine Brownsville came to fruition through strong, collaborative partnerships. In 2011, eight public entities within the city came together to form United Brownsville, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, whose primary purpose is to implement the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan.

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Despite its health disparities, Brownsville has been very successful in implementing wellness initiatives throughout the community. From the development of the Hispanic Health Research Center Community Advisory Board (CAB) to the creation of Brownsville’s first ever CycloBia, the Brownsville community is committed to promoting the HEALTHY and LIVABLE vision themes outlined in the Comprehensive Plan.

Regarding the state of education, the high school graduation rate is an exceptionally low 53 percent. Our city has merged with community partners to help our youth through various educational initiatives such as the “All In” movement – not merely a framework – but a pledge to prepare and motivate students who would otherwise drop out of high school and expose them to postsecondary education as a path to prosper and enter the workforce.

The local newspaper, Brownsville Herald, on October 14, 2008 published article titled ‘BISD wins $1 Million [Broad] Scholarship prize” which highlighted “how working together Brownsville's school district, perhaps best known as an unlikely cultivator of young chess phenoms, impressed the foundation's judges by outperforming other Texas districts with similar income levels in reading and math at all grade levels in 2007.

Furthermore, the article stated “The performance was only the most recent success of students making greater strides than similar Texas districts. More Brownsville students are taking advanced placement courses and the SAT college entrance exam than years past.”

Brownsville’s combined efforts in promoting a HEALTHY, LIVEABLE and TALENTED community led us to be selected as a finalist for the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Roadmaps to Health Prize and as a recipient of the White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) Initiative in January 2014, and this designation led to Brownsville leveraging federal technical assistance in support of the City’s visions for wellness, education and economic development. Additionally a Preserve America Grant $132,870 has helped spark to revitalize our downtown and historic “Old City” cemetery allowing for a safe and pedestrian friendly atmosphere. “Improving Brownsville’s socio-economic profile is what breaking barriers is all about,” stated Mayor Antonio “Tony” Martinez. It’s why economic gains mean little without seeing increases in educational achievement levels or improved public health indicators. For centuries, we have depended on the land and our location – as a port city and a trade city. This will always play a role in our community, but what will take us to new horizons and allow us to compete in a global economy lies in the people who inhabit both.” http://vimeo.com/84803845

PART II: DESCRIBE THREE COMMUNITY-DRIVEN PROJECTSDescribe your three best projects that have resulted in significant local impact and action planning within the past five years. Past All-America City Award applicants have highlighted projects to increase third grade reading success for at-risk children, to increase health care for underserved populations, to create new businesses and jobs, to revitalize downtown, to engage youth in identifying and planning services and facilities, to promote cross sector collaborative centers, to increase fiscal sustainability, to develop emergency disaster plans, to recover from a natural disaster, and more. For 2013, NCL invites all applicants to include at least one project in their application that spotlights innovative approaches to promote healthy communities (examples include healthy eating, anti-obesity efforts, walkable cities, healthy living, and play, among others). Be sure to tell us how each of these projects promote civic engagement, collaboration, inclusiveness, innovation, and impact. See criteria above and consult NCL’s Civic Index – available at no cost to applicants. Request it @ aac@ncl.org.

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PROJECT ONE Provide the project name and a description of its qualitative and quantitative impacts in the past five years. (2,000 word maximum) Tell us the challenge being addressed, actions taken, and the impact/outcomes of this project on your community’s residents. Provide the name of the primary contact for the project. Name & title, organization, address, telephone, and e-mail address. (This person may be contacted to verify information.)

PROJECT ONE: Living and Being Well: Community Advisory Board (CAB)Primary Contact: Lisa Mitchell-BennettOrganization: University of Texas Health Science Center, School of Public Health Brownsville Regional CampusAddress: 80 Fort Brown, Bldg. N100, Brownsville, Texas 78520Telephone: (956) 882-5183Email: lisa.mitchell-bennett@uth.tmc.edu

Despite Brownsville’s alarming statistics, and to further efforts, the University of Texas School of Public Health (UTSPH) Brownsville Regional Campus spearheaded the Community Advisory Board (CAB). Comprised of city government, business, education, healthcare and social service and non-profit organizations, CAB focuses its efforts on reaching underserved, lower-income marginalized neighborhoods in Brownsville. The purpose of the CAB is to: (1) Work with UTSPH researchers to ensure that health information and research is more accessible and more fully understood by Rio Grande Valley residents, (2) Share information, collaborate and participate in forming networks and potential funding opportunities, (3) Provide feedback on outreach and recruitment strategies, (4) Lead policy and environmental change interventions in partnership with local government and community entities. The obesity epidemic affecting the local population, and high prevalence of diabetes and accompanying chronic conditions led CAB to devise a strategic plan and innovative approaches to face these challenges.

The CAB is able to respond to UTSPH Cameron County Hispanic Cohort, a longitudinal cohort study of over 2,600 randomly selected Brownsville residents who provide an ongoing scientific snapshot of behavior, health and well-being of residents, has given us crucial local data not previously available, allowing measureable impact of our initiatives. This 10 year cohort, currently tracks participants every 5 years measuring short term and longer term physical and behavioral outcomes, including exposure to our collaborative interventions, community activities, media campaign, policy and environmental change and to accurately measure rates of unhealthy indicators. This evidenced based method has provided the coalition with scientifically accurate local data to effectively fight against obesity and diabetes.

With positive outcomes in other communities, the “Community Wide Campaign” model was selected by members of the CAB to reduce diabetes, obesity and its complications by increasing physical activity and encouraging healthy food choices under the Tu Salud ¡Si Cuenta! Community Wide Campaign and its resulting components The Challenge and CycloBia Brownsville. CAB’s strategy focuses on measurable outcomes, recruits key leaders to create wellness programs and fosters partnerships to support and promote active living and healthy life styles in Brownsville.

“Tu Salud ¡Si Cuenta!” “Your Health Matters!” Community Wide Campaign

A most significant health related initiative led by the CAB is the Tu Salud ¡Si Cuenta! Community Wide Campaign (TSSC). A large-scale initiative that delivers messages using mass media: providing individually-focused efforts such as physical activity counseling; health risk screenings and education; and environmental change strategies.

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TSSC examines the type of characteristics and components that are most effective, an evidenced-based community wide campaign with local media partners to reach the extensive Spanish speaking population. TSSC is designed and implemented for Mexican American adults between the ages of 20-64 years and their families along the U.S./Mexico Border, focusing on the topics of physical activity and healthy food choice. (Reininger et al., 2010).The campaign features local role models in the media promoting physical activity and healthy nutrition to address the obesity epidemic in Brownsville, Cameron County and the Rio Grande Valley. The agreements with television station Televisa Noreste, Radio Avanzado, and the Brownsville Herald newspaper yielded free air/print time. In 2005, weekly TSSC TV health segments were implemented as well as daily radio PSA’s. The Televisa segments today reach an estimated 20,000 viewers on both sides of the U.S./Mexico border, while the radio PSA’s are broadcasted on three different stations reaching at least 100,000 listeners on both sides.

Since 2007 the Brownsville Herald and subsequently its sister publication the Valley Star, bilingual local newspapers each with 10,000 readers in Brownsville and 8,000 in Harlingen, feature a weekly health and quality of life improvement column in the Sunday edition. Topics include: local citizen role models making healthy lifestyle changes and local leaders promoting health policy and changes to the built environment. The TSSC campaign reaches over 180,000 Brownsville residents through the distribution of its monthly newsletters, weekly TV segments on a popular, local morning show on Televisa, and on the three radio stations. TSSC launched a website and social media sites to keep the community informed about opportunities and events, as well as motivational messages including, testimonies from role models, healthy recipes and classes that encourage community members to exercise and make healthier choices. This all led to the growth of an extensive community health worker outreach program offering free exercise and nutrition opportunities at schools, parks and churches throughout the city. www.tusaludsicuenta.info

TSSC is a comprehensive evidence-based “Community Wide Campaign” model that recognizes the need to create healthy communities through environmental and policy change, personal contact, social support and by providing opportunities to act on health information in a supportive environment. Community Health Workers (promotoras) are extremely effective at communicating information but more importantly at establishing a supportive relationship by understanding the culture and context of the people they reach.

In 2005, promotora volunteers distributed TSSC newsletters via door-to-door campaigns. Their role has greatly expanded; leading trainings, organizing exercise groups, gathering data, teaching diabetes self-management classes, organizing environmental change policy and helping patients navigate health care access. Cohort study results have shown that exposure to components of the TSSC campaign- media messages combined with promotoras efforts-is associated with residents’ making lifestyle changes to improve their health. As a way to broaden the audience for TSSC and engage more community groups in wellness efforts, a community-wide weight-loss challenge was developed between the city and UTSPH. It is referred to as The Challenge Brownsville.

“The Challenge Brownsville” (The Challenge)

The Challenge, a yearly city-wide weight-loss three month challenge, involves city government, business, education and healthcare institutions to engage local residents to increase physical activity, and make healthy food choices to create healthy communities.

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In January 2010, The Challenge, formerly known as Brownsville’s Biggest Loser Challenge, originated with 410 registered participants and has increased every year, with 1274 participants for the 2013 season. In its 4th season, 3,763 participants have lost 7,862 pounds, a total percentage weight loss of 4.18%. Participants connect for motivation and support through social media sites, motivational text messages, and cooking/exercise demos. Businesses have the opportunity to become sponsors for prize money, advertising, incentives and to host teams and weekend events.

Private gyms provide free classes and personal trainers during the annual 4-month challenge. Several businesses, as a result of being sponsors and teams participants of The Challenge, have developed their own wellness programs in their organizations and have become agents of change within their organizations. The Challenge, Brownsville set two Zumba® Guinness World Records® (GWR). The first GWR was for the largest Zumba® class in which 1,223 adults participated. The second was set for the largest Zumbatomic® class in which 383 children participated. As momentum increases, more grassroot organizing efforts are collaborating in wellness initiatives. Public awareness and support for healthy weight loss continues to grow and continues to touch the lives of thousands of residents. One consequential positive impact is a company led wellness weight-loss challenge for Texas (The Slim Down, Show Down), initiated by a CAB member through her employer, and resulted in producing similar weight-loss outcomes. Another was the HEB Healthy Community Challenge-An initiative of It’s Time Texas, a state-wide grass roots collaborative effort dedicated to making Texas the healthiest state in the nation. Brownsville won first place in 2012 for Mid-Size Community and ranked third in 2013 for Large Community. http://vimeo.com/album/2779474/video/84172839 http://vimeo.com/23221839 http://vimeo.com/album/2779474/video/41569460

Community Cross-Sector Collaborators

A foundation of our success in these efforts is our collaborative grassroots achievements by our civically engaged volunteers. Many have contributed in diverse capacities, such as Sal’s SG BootCamp and Unlimited Sport Adventures.

Five years ago, we could not keep a gym open and today programs led by personal trainers are bustling with activity, such as Sal’s SG BootCamp. The first year of his business’ participation had a great impact. The bootcamp’s first class had over 100 people in attendance and produced the highest percentage weight-loss and winners in the most categories. http://vimeo.com/34635816

In 2004, civically engaged volunteers from a local bicycling club; Unlimited Sport Adventures collaborated to innovate and creatively change the built environment of our city by creating a volunteer network of hike and bike riders in our local trails throughout our city parks. Healthy Communities of Brownsville, a non-profit has assisted in passing ordinances and policies that would ensure safety for pedestrians, smoke free spaces and downtown revitalization efforts to transform Brownsville into a healthy and diverse community. The city now consists of almost thirty-two miles of street bike lanes, and two popular bike trails used frequently by community members. The Belden Trail is one mile in length and is located on the west side of Brownsville connecting an elementary school and park, while the 8.5 mile Palo Alto/Linear Park Trail links an historical state park with a downtown park that provides a farmers’ market to the community every Saturday. The focus of our city has shifted to creating an environment and lifestyle that fosters healthy communities.http://vimeo.com/80087147 

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CycloBia Brownsville

As a result of the success of The Challenge, along with Brownville’s revitalization efforts to encourage pedestrian and bicycle use, a ripple effect to be healthy began to transform the community. The CAB, through Transforming Texas (Community Transformation Grant) which focused on physical environments, systems and policies to promote physical activity, nutrition, tobacco free living and quality preventive health care for chronic disease, helped implement the largest community bicycle- related event, CycloBia Brownsville. Modeled after cyclovias popularized in Bogota, Colombia; CycloBia Brownsville is a free family health event that temporarily closes several miles of streets to vehicular traffic in downtown Brownsville for the exclusive use of pedestrians and cyclists. Runners, walkers, cyclists, children, teens and adults of all ages are given the opportunity to safely enjoy the open streets. Featured along the route are activity hubs (reclovias) that provide additional exercise activities and healthy alternative concessions.http://vimeo.com/album/2779474/video/76647740

Bike Texas and Bikes for Tikes, provide free bike rentals, helmets, repairs, promote physical activity and bike safety among the community. Brownsville’s first CycloBia took place in November 2012 and had over 3,000 participants. Recently, in August 2013, the CycloBia had 10,000 participants- a 233% increase. The momentum is palpable and dramatic and has changed the scenery and culture of this amazing community. Due to popular demand within the community, four more CycloBia’s are planned for 2014 and hope to reach even more people this year. CycloBia events have been a great way to educate and engage the community at large in active living and allow them to try out cycling and walking in a safe outdoor environment. http://vimeo.com/81020077

The Community Advisory Board has been instrumental in this transformation by fostering partnerships and implementing healthy community-initiatives to underserved, lower-income marginalized neighborhoods in Brownsville. CAB began in 2003, with thirty-five members from various organizations from educational institutions to health care organizations. Today, CAB’s membership has grown to 210 members including a much broader membership base and has become one of the most significantly influential organizations within Brownsville and Cameron County. Local policy makers and CAB members are convinced that by fostering healthy communities through “Community Wide Campaigns” and investing on physical changes-redesign of streets and bike trials- are needed to improve the economy in order to address our unhealthy lifestyle that is driven by poverty and the very design of our community. As a result of CAB’s efforts, health experts now sit alongside urban planners, engineers, law enforcement, neighborhood residents, affordable housing specialists, community organizers, educators and policy makers to plan and dream for a green, healthy, economically vibrant community. As the community moves forward, the Community Advisory Board is now involved with the Brownsville Independent School District’s Coordinated Approach to Children’s Health (CATCH) project; an eight-component based school model to ensure the evolution of a multipronged healthy community.

Faced with challenges, Brownsville is a true role model, an All-America City, leading the way as an example for our region and state, changing the environment and health indicators. The impact of our wellness initiatives have led to neighboring communities, such as McAllen and San Benito, participating in and modeling Brownsville’s wellness initiatives.http://vimeo.com/album/2779474/video/76647740 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmP0NN6cShs

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PROJECT TWO:

Provide the project name and a description of its qualitative and quantitative impacts in the past five years. (2,000 word maximum) Tell us the challenge being addressed, actions taken, and the impact/outcomes of this project on your community’s residents. Provide the name of the primary contact for the project. Name & title, organization, address, telephone, and e-mail address. (This person may be contacted to verify information.)

PROJECT TWO: Education: All In “Cradle to Career” AchievementsPrimary Contact: Traci Wickett, Executive DirectorOrganization: United Way of Southern Cameron CountyAddress: 634 E. Levee St. Brownsville, TX 78520Telephone: (956) 548-6880Email: traci@unitedway.com

Coordinated Approach to Children’s Health (CATCH) Program

Child obesity figures in the community of Brownsville are striking – over thirty percent of Brownsville youth attending fourth grade are considered obese. In order to improve the general well-being of its youth, the Brownsville Independent School District (BISD) implemented a Coordinated Approach to Children’s Health (CATCH) program into operation at numerous campuses across the district. Several BISD teachers and staff members have been awarded CATCH state champions. Brownsville took CATCH to a new level and differentiated itself by incorporating it in all 55 campuses, by developing CATCH champions and creating the “CATCH Binder” a chronological instrument which outlines the activities for each academic year within BISD.

The BISD’s CATCH program is based on the CDC coordinated school health model (as it relates to physical activity, diet, and tobacco prevention) in which eight components work interactively to educate young people about and provide support for a healthful lifestyle. The eight components are: health education, physical education, health services, child nutrition services, counseling and psychological services, healthy school environment, health promotion for staff, and family/community involvement. CATCH employs a holistic approach to child health promotion by targeting multiple aspects of the school environment and involves classroom teachers, Child Nutrition Services, physical education (PE) teachers, students and their families, and the broader school community in a wide range of health-promoting activities for all children.

A critical component of the CATCH program is the interaction between BISD staff and students. The BISD has worked vigorously in motivating students in making healthier life choices such as eating more fruits and vegetables. By establishing multi-faceted tactics such as cooking classes, embracing the Go, Slow, Whoa, Program, and promoting to students the importance of integrating a variety of locally grown foods into their daily diet.

Across the nation, the CATCH K-5 program has been proven to improve students’ self-reported eating and the curriculum has increased students’ scores on standardized state assessment exams. Students’ overall performance is optimized because of the coordinated approach in which administration, nursing staff, physical education teachers, food service workers and parent volunteers all contribute support and guidance and students are more engaged in the program.

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Within BISD, CATCH committees have been formed to promote this healthy and active lifestyle. One example is Mrs. Nisselda De Leon, Child Nutrition Manager at Ortiz Elementary, who actively engages the children at her school to choose healthier food options-such as vegetables and fruits-and also to engage in physical activity such as running. At times, Mrs. De Leon can even be found running with the students.

Based on the study “PASS & CATCH Improves Academic Achievement” by Nancy Murray and colleagues was funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, proved that elementary students involved in classroom activities for a combined 60 minutes of physical activity had higher math and reading scores.

“All In” Initiative

A major barrier to prosperity in Brownsville is low educational attainment. While Brownsville has a large pool of young people who are eager to work, roughly half of those potential workers do not have a high school diploma. Currently, sixty-two percent of Brownsville students, compared to the State level of eighty-one percent, graduate from high school.

Leadership across Brownsville has strengthened ties in efforts to increase talent within the community and increase high school graduation rates. Brownville is one of three cities in the United States to receive a three year grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2011 to create a partnership that would work to double the number of young adults in Brownsville who earn postsecondary credentials with labor market value by 2025.

The Partners for Postsecondary Success (PPS), or All In as the initiative is called, involves community project partners that specialize in business, education, career development, community development, social services, banking, and workforce solutions. Program framework involves working with students who are not actively engaged in the college preparation or college completion process. Therefore, the following measures are utilized: 1) promotion of the postsecondary educational process; 2) provision of general and financial aid guidance; 3) provision of guidance regarding completion of first-year requirements; 4) provision of problem-solving skills; 5) promotion of educational and career pathway alignment; and 6) provision of assistance with first job matters.

Curriculum alignment is an important tool that the All In program has also implemented into its framework. Research on curriculum alignment shows a strong correlation to student achievement. It also helps to modify courses and programs to better target student postsecondary success and make better use of school resources. Curriculum alignment involving science, math, English and Social Studies coursework can also help reduce remediation and help students earn postsecondary credentials faster. Educators across all levels (including BISD, TSC and UTB) formally evaluate a course or an educational program to address the changing needs of students and the workforce. Teachers, educational advisers and program coordinators collaborate to develop the curriculum and ensure there are no gaps that may impede academic progress.

The program is committed to the use of data as a tool for planning, for evaluation, and for communicating important facts about the state of education and workforce preparedness in Brownsville. The 2013 Community Indicator Report on Human Capital and Education is a report for the community that measures important steps along the journey from education to a good job. This first Community Indicator Report on Human Capital and Education establishes a baseline for each indicator. Each year, Partners for Postsecondary Success will update this report and evaluate progress on critical indicators relating to the education and gainful employment of our community’s young people.

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Implementation has resulted in successes such as a web-based Career Planning Tool that facilitates career planning-in health, information technology, and the Science Technology Engineering and Math fields-for middle school, high school and postsecondary students. Classroom teachers and parents alike are encouraged to use the tool to assist youth in choosing a career preference.

The All In Student Ambassadors (college students) visit with high school students at their respective alma mater to discuss the college application process including financial aid, degree plans, money management, testing requirements, and even volunteering and time management. About 1,500 high school students are expected to participate during the 2013-2014 school year; a far cry from the dozens that participated the previous year. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN-FEXxZiM4

At the University level, students participate in First Year Seminar courses that are team-taught by faculty, staff and advisors. Students also obtain additional guidance regarding specific intrusive advising, library skills training, college writing skills, career and financial literacy, time management, study skills and motivation. Nationally, the percentage of students leaving college after their first year is thirty percent. In Brownsville, an average of fifty-five percent of all freshman entering The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College ( UTB and TSC) persist after the first year of college. All In and partners are working diligently to increase the retention rate of all first year students. Data provided by the UTB and TSC Office of Data Management and reporting also shows a gradual increase in the number of associate and bachelor degrees over the last ten years.

Scholastic Chess Program

The game of chess has been around for centuries. Rulers of ancient empires and kingdoms played chess as a means to improve strategic skills – especially for battles against competing kingdoms. Throughout the world, chess is part of the curricula in nearly thirty countries and is taught in their public schools. (Isaac Linder, “Chess, a Subject Taught at School,” Sputnik: Digest of the Soviet Union Press, June 1990, pp. 164-166). Closer to home, an article, "Chess and Standard Test Scores", James M. Liptrap, in Chess Life, March 1998, reviewed the results of a Texas study indicated that regular (non-honors) elementary students who participated in a school chess club showed twice the improvement of non-chess players in Reading and Mathematics between third and fifth grades on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills.

What began in 1989 as a strategy to curtail student mischief by Russell Elementary teacher J.J. Guajardo has evolved into BISD elementary school students earning an unprecedented seven straight State Chess Championship awards. Motivated by the success of Russell Elementary, other BISD campuses began scholastic chess programs. Parents serve as an integral component of each scholastic chess program; and, advocated the BISD Chess Program to be officially approved by the BISD school board in 2003. From 2003 on, the BISD provided funding to pay for tournament entry fees, chess supplies, stipends for travel coaches and travel to national championships. In April 2003, the Texas Senate proclaimed the city of Brownsville as the Chess Capital of Texas and adopted Resolution No. 610 declaring the accomplishments of the BISD Scholastic Chess Program.

Most recently, over 1,550 students from across the Rio Grande Valley participated in the 2014 Region VIII Championships on January 25th and 26th. Organized by parents and staff at Parades Elementary School and hosted at BISD’s Veterans Memorial High School, the tournament was the largest region VIII Championship ever. The following BISD schools dominated the competition: Parades Elementary School, Hudson Elementary, Sharp Elementary, Vela Middle School, Hanna High School, Porter High School, and Veterans Memorial High School.

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We have embraced the game of chess to develop smarter students from Pre-Kinder to University level. The BISD Scholastic Chess Program fully compliments the strategic goal to have collaborative partnerships working collectively towards creation of a talented community strongly supported by not only school district personnel but also parents and community partners.

Chess has now become such a “cool” sport in Brownsville that approximately forty-eight of the fifty-five BISD campuses; and, similar chess programs have spread across eight Rio Grande Valley school communities including Edinburg (All America City 1968, 1995, and 2000) and Harlingen (All America City 1992). BISD chess teams are known nationally and have been featured in Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel on HBO Sports in June 2010 and mentioned by Judge Dietz in The Time to Speak is Now-Part II in February 2013 when discussing Texas public school finance.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uunRomBswGA&index=2&list=PL401070CF3B990CF5

City of Brownsville

In 2010, the Parks and Recreation Department of the city teamed up with Joseph Molina to begin a Chess Summer Program at The Recreation Center. During the first year, the program resulted in more than fifty children learning about chess and competing in their first chess tournament that capped off a successful summer program. The summer chess program has expanded to other parks in the city.

University Chess

UTB/TSC initiated a chess program giving students-many of them BISD graduates-the opportunity to play competitive chess at the collegiate level becoming one of the top collegiate programs in the nation. The team from UTB/TSC has placed among the top 5 universities at the Pan American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championships 6 years in a row. UTB/TSC now offers Chess scholarships and has built a reputation similar to BISD’s as a powerhouse in the world of chess. The Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship is the foremost intercollegiate team chess championship in the Americas.

The BISD Scholastic Chess Program, as well as the chess programs at the University and community levels fully compliments the goal of Brownsville to have collaborative partnerships working together towards creation of a talented and educated community. The CATCH program has provided equal efforts in educating the younger generations and community in general about how individuals and families can develop healthier lifestyles. These two educational programs, one academic and the other sport, both assist in helping to achieve the main outcome of the All In Initiative-to produce a higher educated and better workforce in Brownsville. It is the belief of these collective partners, educators, employers, leaders, mentors and parents, that by working together a transformation can occur. All three programs work together through different avenues of education to improve the whole community of Brownsville.

PROJECT THREE Provide the project name and a description of its qualitative and quantitative impacts in the past five years. (2,000 word maximum) Tell us the challenge being addressed, actions taken, and the impact/outcomes of this project on your community’s residents.

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Provide the name of the primary contact for the project. Name & title, organization, address, telephone, and e-mail address. (This person may be contacted to verify information.)

Primary Contact: Miguel “Mike” Gonzalez, Executive DirectorOrganization: United BrownsvilleAddress: 2390 Central Blvd., Suite X, Brownsville, TX 78520Telephone: (956) 542-6411Email: mikeg@unitedbrownsville.com

The Brownsville region has faced decades of structural unemployment that has led to a number of critically negative economic performance indicators including: per capita earnings of 62 percent the national average; an unemployment rate of 9.9 percent compared to 6.1 for Texas; and household poverty rates persistently over 30 percent.

Employment growth in the region has been dominated by low-skill/low-wage non-exporting industries while growth in high-skill/high-wage exporting industries has been stagnating or in decline. Jobs at exporting firms have largely been dependent upon industrial clusters based on the traditional U.S./Mexico border maquiladora (assembly plants) model that is becoming increasingly irrelevant in a globally competitive context. It is clear that poverty and low educational attainment will continue deterring diversification of the industrial base, and growth over the next several years will be steady, but not strong enough to reduce the large income and employment disparities with the state or nation.

The Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan helped define a new economic vision for our region. Prosperous vision themes were defined through intensive community engagement, describing a community with low poverty rates based on targeted industrial clusters that offer good jobs paying livable wages and offering sustainable employment opportunities for future generations.

Winner of the American Planning Association’s 2009 Comprehensive Planning Award, the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan was delivered by the Task Force to the Brownsville City Commission on Tuesday, July 21, 2009, and it was adopted. The plan was designed with two goals in mind: first, to establish our community’s vision objectives for a ten-year planning horizon; and second, to develop an implementable strategy to help reach these targeted objectives by leveraging our community’s natural, institutional, human, economic, and infrastructure resources in an effective, competitive and sustainable way.

United Brownsville

In 2011, eight public entities from Brownsville came together to form the United Brownsville Coordinating Board to implement the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan. These entities include: Brownsville, the Port of Brownsville, Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation, Brownsville Independent School District, University of Texas at Brownsville, Texas Southmost College, Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation, and Brownsville Public Utilities Board. Eight private sector non-voting members (community leaders) are also part of the United Brownsville Board, including the Executive Director of the Brownsville Chamber of Commerce, attorneys, business owners, and individuals in the professional/accounting, building contractors, and medical professions.

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United Brownsville, a 501(c)(3) organization, services as a backbone for cross-institutional collaboration and to ensure the implementation of the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan. The community vision and the associated outcome objectives are the foundation for the development of the Comprehensive plan. They have articulated the direction and form in which Brownsville has grown; provided a basis for the development, selection and ranking of the strategies employed to move the City along the direction established by the Visions: and established a mechanism for tracking the City’s progress towards its goals.

The vision and goals were developed through an extensive public participation process that was centered on the Task Force and involved over 250 participating individuals. The Task Force developed over 180 goals, objectives and sub- objectives and prioritized the top three objectives within each of the nineteen sub-dimensions.

The aforementioned twelve themes summarize a vision that is necessary for planning the future of Brownsville. The use of indicators has made the vision operational in order to measure and identify the gaps between visions and reality. United Brownsville understands the key root causes of those gaps, including the constraints that prevent the community from realizing its vision and, as such, works to develop strategies targeted specifically to overcome constraints and root causes.Developing such strategies has entailed working collaboratively with its key members and other, external organizations. Specifically, United Brownsville has worked hand-in-hand with the City of Brownsville’s Office of Grant Management and Community Development (OGM/CD) department to implement the visions set forth in the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plan. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M47iCaNU06U

Strategic Partners

The Office of Grant Management and Community Development (OGM) is currently identifying, securing and managing grant funding that promotes an increased quality of life for the community of Brownsville.

January 2014, the White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) Initiative. Brownsville is one of seven cities in the U.S. selected as a recipient for SC2, allowing federal inter-agency experts to be deployed to work alongside city leadership, community organizations, local businesses and philanthropic foundations to support the cities’ vision for economic growth and development.

January 2014, funding from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) for Connecting Brownsville’s Resaca de la Palma Battlefield to the Historic Battlefield Hike and Bike Trail.

July 2013, Brownsville’s Historic Battlefield Trail Fort Brown Connection, awarded by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), leading to a new Fort Brown Connection, forming 2.75 miles of bicycle and pedestrian enhancements through downtown Brownsville expanding into existing Historic Battlefield Hike and Bike Trail from Linear Park to the Fort Brown Memorial Golf Course.

June 2012, the Belden Trail Project, was awarded by the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, led to the construction of a new hike-and-bike trail in West Brownsville.

December 2012, funding from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program through the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) and lighting improvements for the City Plaza and City Hall buildings as well as an innovative methane gas collection system for the City Landfill.

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Each of these projects align with the Imagine Brownsville Comprehensive Plans’ visions of VIBRANT and LIVABLE, which promote a community with a revitalized downtown core and preserve open spaces and promote parks, walking/bike trails and walkable, pedestrian-friendly streets. They complement the Comprehensive Plan’s Transportation Element by providing a well-connected transportation system, which is vital to moving the City of Brownsville, its extraterritorial jurisdiction and the region as a whole forward. http://vimeo.com/78588724 

Leading the charge in the fight against chronic diseases and obesity is the Brownsville Public Health Department. The first step was to create a wellness coordinator position which initiated the development of a workplace wellness program. Beginning as an internal initiative, this expanded to be an inclusive and diverse comprehensive wellness plan. Since 2009, the City of Brownsville’s Public Health Department has aligned the Comprehensive Plan’s HEALTHY and SUSTAINABLE vision themes. http://vimeo.com/71981201

Healthy Communities of Brownsville

On December 15, 2009, our city Health Department and Healthy Communities of Brownsville, through a collaborative effort succeeded in passing the first plastic bag Ordinance in the State of Texas. It stipulated the creation of the Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC), which consisted of various community stakeholders. The EAC worked collectively with residents until the ordinance became effective on January 5, 2011, which was proceeded by a one year voluntary compliance. The ordinance prohibits the use of plastic bags – with some exceptions – from general use by retail outlets in the city. Instead, business establishments only provide reusable bags as checkout bags to customers with or without charge. To the extent plastic or other non-reusable bags are requested by a customer, an environmental fee of $1.00 per transaction is established and must be paid at the time the bag is provided to the customer. The environmental fee remitted to the City is used towards environmental programs, recycling, and clean-up initiatives. Since the ordinance’s inception in 2011, it has eliminated more than 511,000,000 plastic bags from entering our waste stream, not only protecting and maintaining the city’s environmental resources, but promoting a LIVABLE community and an increased quality of life. On February 9, 2014, a local citizen said it best on a letter to the editor by stating “When I drive the streets of Brownsville now I am glad the city stepped up to the plate to improve our city for all of us,” “our streets and the surrounding property look like we care the wallpapering of plastic bags is gone” and I am proud to do my part to help. Since then our City has become a role model for cities nationwide and as of today has assisted over 50 other cities. Brownsville continues to be a leader in promoting and providing a clean, healthy and vibrant community. http://vimeo.com/18219599 http://vimeo.com/18474003

In February of 2013, efforts were spearheaded which expanded our existing smoking ordinance into a comprehensive (100%) smoke free workplace; were put into effect through area medical and public health leaders and various community partners. The ordinance restricts the usage and consumption of tobacco-related products in enclosed restaurants, places of employment, and residential facilities, thus promoting the HEALTHY vision theme with a focus on prevention.

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A local student researching the effects of the amended smoking ordinance found there was no significant impact from the ordinance. A year after the implementation, bars and restaurants have not experienced a significant decrease in business, nor did their monthly revenues change. The analysis was based on the mixed beverage tax monthly receipts of Brownsville and three nearby cities (Harlingen, McAllen and Laredo) for the years of 2012 and 2013. The study showed that there was no adverse economic impact and was consistent with other studies conducted in other cities. (L. Morales, 2014)

Resaca Restoration Dredging

Community efforts to restore the area’s resacas to their former luster have resulted in nearly double the estimated amount of cubic yards (19,528) of sediment removed from the bottom of the first resaca within the plan. Additionally, over 217 tires were removed from the resaca. Community plans to take advantage of the newly-restored resacas and provide pocket areas of visually pleasing, soothing and natural getaways within a large urban area for residents and visitors alike are on their way to coming closer to fruition. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuW0HVimri4http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trXo3aMiv54 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX_Crj6yhe4http://vimeo.com/52710132

We have surely improved the adjectives with which our city is described in both local and national media, and more importantly by its own citizens. We are refining from aforementioned titles of “poorest”, “fattest” and “highest rates of diabetes in the nation.” As a city mostly known for being “worn” by its border violence, poverty and high rates of disease, we are not just changing our image through superficial marketing campaigns, but truly working to improve the health and well-being of all our residents through smart planning, economic development, and quality clinical care. Our comprehensive engagement efforts and action planning have created a seismic shift in attitudes about Brownsville, both from the perspective of its residents and the rest of the world. Our success rests squarely on our ability to work together across diverse sectors and to seize the moment, capitalizing on pivotal opportunities and resources, harnessing the assets, not focused on the barriers. The potential for economic development and creation of a healthy and vibrant population is immense. We have created such momentum to improve this special place and its people that our enthusiasm reaches from the city traffic and parks department workers involved in redesigning our streets for pedestrians, to the wealthy banker or small restaurant owner engaged in downtown revitalization who offer healthy choice menu options; from the humble families living in neighborhoods previously too dangerous to walk, ride or play in which now boast community gardens and hike and bike trails, to the hospital emergency room doctors overwhelmed with obese, diabetic patients, now able to prescribe them fruits and veggies from the local Farmers Market, and refer them to community health workers for follow-up diabetes management in their home. This enthusiasm is contagious and has spread to numerous city and county officials from across the state and nation who regularly approach us for advice about our template for success.

Our story is motivating for the many cities across the country facing seemingly insurmountable problems recovering from the last decade’s economic challenges. High unemployment, poverty, obesity and widespread chronic illness, such as diabetes, were with us long before the most recent economic downturn. If Brownsville can recover, there is hope for any town or city in the country, but only if the efforts are focused on the unique assets of the community and improving quality of life for everyone. Collaborating efforts, focusing on one’s community, and implementing positive changes is what an All-America City is all about! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBe2U0WxR4E

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End of Application. Thank you for submitting your All-America City Award Application!

Submit the application: 1) by email (aac@ncl.org) or fax (888-314-6053)

by Tuesday, March 18, 2014, 11:59 p.m. PST; and,2) mail one hard copy with $200(*You only pay $100 application fee if you submit a

Letter of Intent to Apply by November 15) application fee to: National Civic League, 1889 York Street, Denver, Colorado 80206.

National Civic League is the home of the All-America City Award.

Need additional guidance? Email aac@ncl.org or go to www.allamericacityaward.com for announcements of upcoming webinars for prospective applicants

or call NCL at 303-571-4343.

Timeline:

September 2013-February 2014 – Monthly conference calls with NCL staff and AAC community leaders to learn more about the benefits of AAC and the application

process, and share healthy communities best practices.

Letter of Intent to Apply Due: November 15, 2013 *Save $100 of the application fee if you submit a Letter of Intent to Apply by November 15, 2013.

Application Due: Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Finalists Announced: April 2014Finalist community delegations will be invited to Denver to present.

Peer-Learning Workshops & Awards Presentation/Competition: June, 2014 in Denver, Colorado

Fiinalist community delegations will be asked to present their story to a national jury of civic, local government, business, philanthropy, and community experts

in Denver in June 2014. Finalists will be named in April 2014.

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Brownsville, Texas