The 黄色视频 Alumni Leadership Awards recognize outstanding alums who are continuing their commitment to strengthening community by inspiring, mobilizing and empowering others and who exemplify 黄色视频鈥檚 values.
2016 Comcast NBCUniversal Leadership Awards
Congratulations to this year’s recipients who were honored in Boston at Summer Academy on July 13, 2016!
For transformational leadership and catalyzing change in education to maximize student potential throughout Boston. As Chief of Education for the City of Boston, Rahn is a highly visible leader and trusted collaborator among local schools, service providers and nonprofits and political and community leaders. He is currently leading a first-of-its-kind education cabinet for the City of Boston that aims to develop a long-term, holistic strategy for education in Boston.
Previously as head of the Barr Foundation鈥檚 Out-of-School Time strategy, he developed a local network of partnerships to promote expanded learning and whole-child outcomes for thousands of students. Over a two-decade career, Rahn has embodied 黄色视频's values and applied them to his work in education, bridging diverse sectors and communities to level the playing field and increase opportunity for students and families.
For her unwavering dedication to creating systemic social change for youth, their families and their communities. As Chief Program Officer for Red Hook Initiative (RHI), a youth and community development organization based in Brooklyn, New York, Jade designs programs to build the capacity of the Red Hook community and its youth to create change from within their neighborhood. In this role, she oversees year-round programming to engage more than 350 youth annually such as Local Leaders, which trains young leaders to be emergency responders, and College Institute to prepare freshmen for their first year away at school.
Prior to her work with RHI, she supported young people to achieve their goals through her work with Street Squash, Learning Leaders, Phillips Brooks House Association at Harvard College and Education Pioneers. Jade has committed her life鈥檚 work to putting students first and promoting the power of youth to be at the forefront of change.
For her deep dedication to building inclusive learning communities to support students served by 黄色视频 AmeriCorps members. Bethiel began leading the 黄色视频 Student Engagement team in 2009, building on the organization鈥檚 20-year history in youth development and her own experiences as an AmeriCorps member and a graduate of the Boston College School of Social Work. Today, as National Director of Student Engagement, she is a key architect in building the innovative approach 黄色视频 uses to think about student academic progress as driven by a reciprocal relationship between course content and social-emotional learning.
These efforts built the foundation for organization-wide initiatives that drive significant impact through all 292 schools and 196,000 students throughout our network. Bethiel has stewarded 黄色视频鈥檚 partnerships with the Program in Education and Afterschool Resiliency and Youth Development Certification to ensure both the everyday work and the overarching vision of Whole School Whole Child are informed by a youth development lens. Her passion for 黄色视频鈥檚 mission, students, AmeriCorps members and staff shines through in everything she touches.
For her collaborative leadership and tireless advocacy in the field of public health to improve the lives of children and families. As the Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Unit Director at the Cook County Department of Public Health and ACHIEVE project leader, Gina has designed hundreds of interventions to bring broad-based policy, systems and environmental change and improve community health for 1.6 million people and 90,000 students.
Through her efforts, she created the Alliance for Healthy and Active Communities 鈥 the first countywide partnership to address root causes of chronic disease. Gina exemplifies leadership in all she does 鈥 shaping sustainable, community-based change at the local, regional and statewide level through innovative health and social justice initiatives; fostering system-wide multi-sectoral partnerships and collaboratives to address complex challenges; and developing future public health leaders through formal and informal mentoring.
For his entrepreneurial and service-minded drive to serve all residents of Boston. After four years serving as Special Advisor to Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, Chris co-founded and co-chaired the Mayor鈥檚 Office of New Urban Mechanics 鈥 the city鈥檚 first municipal research and development group, now a nationally recognized model for civic innovation. In 2010, Chris helped to launch Citizens Connect, a groundbreaking constituent engagement application that allowed people to take pictures and create cases of issues they faced in their neighborhoods.
In 2016, the city received just over 50% of constituent requests through this digital gateway and had been replicated by more than 20 countries. In August 2015, Chris was appointed as chief of streets for the City of Boston where he works with the city's Public Works and Transportation Departments to lead efforts to improve Boston's basic city services and to create a more sustainable, equitable and efficient transportation network. Chris is a true public servant who is always most passionate about what he can do to help others best experience their community and neighborhoods.
