Big Brothers Big Sisters recognized as 2011 Gold Standard Award winner

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids and East Central Iowa was recognized as a 2011 Gold Standard Award Winner by Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.

The purpose of the Gold Standard Awards is to recognize the top tier of outstanding, all-around performance Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies. A total of 13 agencies will receive Gold Standard Awards and are eligible for Agency of the Year and Board of the Year Awards which will be presented at the 2012 Big Brothers Big Sisters Leadership Summit.  The criteria for nomination include growth and quality measures of mentor relationships, such as a community-based 12 month retention rate of 64 percent or higher, a site-based 12 month retention rate of 41 percent or higher, revenue growth of 5 percent or higher and a minimum 150 children served and $150,000 revenue.

In 2011 Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids and East Central Iowa was ranked 7th in the nation out of over 360 Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies in 12-month retention rates for both site-based and community-based matches. Seventy-four percent of site-based matches and 83 percent of community-based matches within the agency were retained past their one year anniversary.  From 2010 to 2011 Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids and East Central Iowa grew 15 percent in revenue growth.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids and East Central Iowa,

BeABigCR.org, provides children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better, forever.  Most children served by Big Brothers Big Sisters are in single-parent and low-income families or households where a parent is incarcerated.  As the nation's largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers (“Bigs”) and children (“Littles”).  Big Brothers Big Sisters seeks to facilitate the success of children living in our community by encouraging education and school attendance through providing focus in four competency areas:  Connectedness, Attendance, Resources, Extra Curricular (C.A.R.E).  Big Brothers Big Sisters has already seen that the Character Building Project is a springboard for greater success for the children served.  The Character Building Project is an initiative of Big Brothers Big Sisters to help children grow as individuals through education and exposure to a variety of competency areas.