Gwinnett County Public Schools Named Nation's Top School System!

Congratulations to Gwinnett County Public Schools and Superintendent Alvin Wilbanks for winning the nation's top education honor and largest education award in the country, the 2010 Broad Prize for Urban Education!

Broad officials chose Gwinnett County Public Schools as the nation's top urban school system based on student performance over a three-year period. Gwinnett was noted for achieving significant gains between 2005 and 2009.

Among them:

• The average SAT score of 1526 in 2009 topped state and national averages.
• Between 2006 and 2009 SAT participation for African-Americans rose by 9 percentage points.
• Twelve Gwinnett high schools were named Advanced Placement (AP) Honor Schools for performance on exams that prepare students for the rigors of college.

In addition to Supt. Wilbanks unparalleled leadership, the Gwinnett Chamber would especially like to recognize the Gwinnett County Public School System's Board of Education (2010 Chair Dr. Mary Kay Murphy, District III; Vice Chair Dr. Robert McClure, District IV; Carole Boyce, District I; Louise Radloff, District V; and Daniel D. Seckinger, District II), as well as the entire administration, principals, and teachers that achieved such phenomenal success.

Jim Maran
President & CEO
Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce

Finally – a chance to wear those old bridesmaids dresses!

California Dreaming to Host Rally for the Cure Event

California Dreaming will host a Rally for the Cure® 27 Dresses Style Party on October 22 at 7:00 pm at their location on Old Peachtree Road.

The evening's festivities will include a complimentary appetizer buffet with California Dreaming favorites, pink martinis, photographers, and prizes – not to mention the opportunity to wear that old bridesmaid's dress one more time! Guests will receive a goody bag filled with rally items, breast health information and subscriptions to Condé Nast magazines such as SELF, Golf Digest and Bon Appétit.

Rally for the Cure is a grassroots program to spread awareness about breast health and breast cancer in support of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® through volunteer organized golf, tennis and social events. More than 1.65 million people have participated in Rally for the Cure events across the nation since its inception in 1996. This year marks the premier year California Dreaming has rallied against breast cancer.

"The success of Rally is attributed to volunteer ambassadors like, Meghan Anderson, who have said 'Yes we can have a Rally at our restaurant. It is their enthusiasm, energy and support we value in our commitment to support Susan G. Komen," says Diane Perillo, Program Manager, Rally for the Cure.

Since 1996 Komen has received over $50 million from Rally events to support their mission. Rally for the Cure® is based in Wilton, Connecticut. For further information about the California Dreaming Rally event, contact Meghan Anderson, 770-813-9240 or to host a Rally event of your own call 800.327.6811 or visit the website: www.rallyforthecure.com.

He runs a hard-nosed defense, conservative offense, and there isn’t a weed to be found in his yard

Gwinnett Tech to Host Vince Dooley Book Signing and Workshops at Fall Plant Sale

Gardening enthusiasts and Bulldog fans alike will want to flock to Gwinnett Technical College on Friday, October 15. The college is hosting several gardening and horticulture events that day including:

Vince Dooley Book Signing – Avid gardener and former University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley will be signing and discussing his new book, Vince Dooley's Garden: A Horticultural Journey of a Football Coach at 10:00 a.m. Signing is free and books will be for sale.

Planting Workshops – The Continuing Education Division will host two gardening workshops immediately following Dooley's presentation. The workshops – Kitchen Gardens–Vegetables in the Landscape and Flower Show Blue Ribbons Made Easy – will be held at 12:30 and 1:30 p.m., respectively. The registration fee for the workshops is $10 per session.

Fall Plant Sale – The Environmental Horticulture program will host its annual Fall Plant Sale from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Gwinnett Tech Greenhouse, adjacent to Building 600.

Those interested in attending the book signing for Dooley or the gardening classes must register by visiting www.GwinnettTech.edu/ce and selecting the Hobbies and Personal Enrichment class schedule, or by calling 770-995-9697.

Dooley's engagement will be the auditorium of The Busbee Center, Building 700, on the Gwinnett Tech campus, at 5150 Sugarloaf Parkway, Lawrenceville, GA 30043. Please use the north entrance to campus.

Gwinnett Student Leadership Team, Inc.: Creating a Legacy of Success

It seems as if every graduate of the Gwinnett Student Leadership Team, Inc. (GSLT) has a success story to tell. This should come as no surprise to anyone who is familiar with the caliber of students selected to take part in the two-year student leadership program for high school juniors and seniors in Gwinnett County Public Schools and Buford City Schools.

Story after story tells of students like Catalina Colvin Kreider, a 2006 graduate of Dacula High School and a 2010 graduate of the University of Georgia, who is now a first-year teacher at Jones Middle School. Kreider's leadership skills are so developed that her principal tapped her to teach the student leadership academy at Jones. There are other stories like that of Collin Jones who graduated from North Gwinnett High School and is currently attending Harvard University. Jones, a religion major and psychology minor, juggles maintaining a 3.79 GPA, conducting tours for the Harvard Tour Company, and interning at an orphanage in the Dominican Republic.

Additionally, both Kreider and Jones are the only two former GSLT students who have been invited by GSLT Executive Director Nancy Ward to teach alongside renowned leadership gurus from across the nation at the GSLT Summit attended by over 800 students and adults.

The success stories continue with Norcross High School and University of Pennsylvania graduate Lindsay Eierman. With a passion for women's rights, Eierman currently works as an innovation associate for the social enterprise, Source for Change, in India. The rural business process outsourcing organization trains women in technology and employs them for outsourcing services such as data entry and image editing. As the innovation associate, Eierman will work to investigate how and where to replicate their business model.

As a Robertson Scholar at UNC Chapel Hill, Grayson High School graduate Jeremy Knight spent his first summer internship teaching and exploring leadership principles with middle school students. Knight's work does not end with his summer internship, as he is as a counselor for Carolina Kickoff, a summer camp for 150 incoming freshman and a committee chair for the First-Year Focus Council, a committee on the Executive Branch of Student Government.

And then there is Ariel Ford, a 2009 graduate of Peachtree Ridge High School and a sophomore at the University of Florida where she is on a full four-year Gates Millennium Scholarship that will also cover graduate school. During her freshman year, Ford was one of 50 students chosen out of 500 applicants to serve on the Freshman Leadership Council at the University of Florida.

Football fans may be interested in knowing about Drew Butler who is a punter in his junior year for the Georgia Bulldogs. Butler, the son of Kevin and Kathy Butler, led the nation in punting average for the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. He is also the winner of the 2009 College Football Performance Awards Punter Trophy and the 2009 Ray Guy Award. As well as excelling on the football field, Butler also excels in the classroom making the 2009 Dean's List, the 2008 SEC Academic Roll, and the 2008 Athletic Director's Roll.

Whether breaking records on the football field, teaching future leaders, attending acclaimed universities, fighting for women's rights, volunteering at orphanages in third-world countries, each person's story has a common denominator – they attribute their success to GSLT.

Jeremy Knight credits his ability to receive a scholarship to his involvement with GSLT. "I know that without GSLT, I would not have been awarded the scholarship, which has been life-changing for me."

Like Knight, Ariel Ford gives credit to GSLT for helping her to win a spot on the Freshman Leadership Council at the University of Florida. "Without GLST, I would have never been able to make this council. The competition was stiff, but GSLT truly allowed me to be a stand-out leader."

These stories serve as a reminder that as an investor in GSLT and thus Gwinnett's future leaders, the Gwinnett Chamber is helping to create a legacy of success and leadership for Gwinnett County and beyond. For more information on how you can support and get involved with the Gwinnett Student Leadership Team, contact Gail Macrenaris, director of leadership and education, Gwinnett Chamber at 770-232-8803 or gail@gwinnettchamber.org.

IT’S GWINNETT CHAMBER NIGHT AT THE GLADIATORS GAME!

Help Celebrate the Start of their 8^th Season in Gwinnett!
GLADIATORS vs. FLORIDA – Saturday, October 23 – 7:05 p.m.

Group Benefits:

• Great seats, Great Arena. Best available seats at a discount off the gate price in the top minor league arena in the country as voted by minorleaguenews.com.
• Cheer together. Sit together and have fun together in block seating.
• Your name in lights. Your group's name will be on the Arena video board and we'll make an in-arena PA announcement during the game welcoming your group.
• Someone in your group will win! There will be a prize raffle for all attendees in your group.
• Get a deal on Gladiators gear. Each of your group's attendees will get a 10% discount on a merchandise purchase when they attend the game.
  

Group Tickets: $13 (normal game day walk-up of $18)
Group Name: Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce
Group Contact: Vince DaSilva
Gladiators Contact: Jim Hall: (770) 497-5109
jhall@gwinnettgladiators.com
Copy and Paste this link to order your Tickets:
http://www.gwinnettgladiators.com/shop/dboffers.asp?code=CHAM1023

The Young Professionals of hYPe hit a homerun with their Two Year Anniversary

With all the success that Gwinnett's young professionals have achieved since the inception of hYPe two years ago, one could say that the organization was a homerun for its members and the community. hYPe members celebrated their two-year anniversary on June 18th with hot dogs and cold beverages during a tailgate before a Gwinnett Braves baseball game. The 1,000-member strong organization had reason to celebrate with all that they accomplished in just two years, including holding 40 events, a Web site re-design, the launch of a Facebook page and Twitter account, partnering with multiple non-profit organizations, and developing three "work crews" to promote social networking, career development, and community involvement within the organization.

Abby Wilkerson who works for redpepper and leads hYPe's event management work crew, commented on a defining event that let her know hYPe was on the right track.

"I'm extremely proud that the hYPe leadership team was asked to sit on a panel during the lunch session of the Partnership Gwinnett Summit," said Wilkerson. "To be asked to speak in front of that crowd gave us some credibility and made me feel like we had created something legitimate. Almost like the first time you realize that the adults are taking you seriously."

First recommended in the Partnership Gwinnett Community and Economic Development Strategy, hYPe was developed to establish and cultivate young talent within the community and to build Gwinnett's next generation of community and business leaders. The main goals identified for the organization were to offer members the opportunity to interact on an informal level with business and community leaders; provide opportunity for networking with others of like interest and age on the weekends and weeknights; seek out areas for community involvement; and expose the young professionals in metro Atlanta to the hottest hangouts and cultural-rich attractions in Gwinnett.

With a goal in mind, hYPe's high impact, savvy group of diverse young professionals (ages 21-39) have worked diligently to showcase Gwinnett as a unique, fun, and cool place to work and live by holding events, recruiting new members and supporting the community.

hYPe events
The hYPe Event Management work crew, led by redpepper's Abby Wilkerson, worked hard this year locating venues, planning, volunteering their time and spreading the news about hYPe events. The Event Management work crew successfully held numerous events, with an average attendance of 150 people, throughout Gwinnett, including:

• hYPe Quarterly event "Games & Gifts" at Dave & Buster's- August 2009
• Not a Holiday 'Party' Party at The 1818 Club – December 2009
• Thursday Schmooze Day held at Marlow's Tavern every first Thursday of each month
• hYPe Two Year Anniversary with the Gwinnett Braves- June 2010
  

Membership Recruitment
During their first year, hYPe experienced unprecedented growth starting with just 90 members at the Encore Launch event in May 2008 to now over 650 members. Along with enrolling new members, the Membership Recruitment work team, led by Jared Burrell with Grimes Insurance and Financial Services Inc., was also responsible for career development. Thanks to the dedicated members of the membership recruitment work crew hYPe was able to achieve the following:

• Held lunch and learns with a presentation on being "Healthy Young Professionals in June 2009 and "How to be an excellent Networker" in July 2009
• Conducted college recruitment at Georgia Gwinnett College
• Hosted booth at Gwinnett Technical College's "Graduates Networking Session"
• Recruited over 300 members in one year
• Held "Finding a Job in a Down Economy & Positioning for a Promotion" seminar on March 30th featuring Bill Mahoney from Career Builder

Community Involvement
Along with social networking and professional development, hYPe members also wanted to give back to the community. Thanks to the Community Involvement work crew, led by Trinity Hundredmark with Andersen, Tate & Carr, P.C., many lives were touched by the efforts of hYPe members to give back to community. For each event held, hYPe partnered with a local charity and requested that attendees provide a donation to the specific non-profit. The following charity drives were held at various hYPe events:

• In December 2009 members participated in a toy drive for the Gwinnett Children's Shelter which helped give hundreds of presents to children in need
• Partnered with Habitat for Humanity and Clark Howard to build homes for those in need
• Donated books, paper, pencils, binders, etc to the Lilburn Co-Op at the August 2009 quarterly event
• Presented hundreds of canned foods and items to the Lilburn Co-Op on November 3rd 2009
• Volunteered at the SNS Golf Tournament in May 2010
• Formed team with Gwinnett Chamber Board Members for the Great Days of Services and picked up trash on Highway-316

"hYPe is not only a great way to meet new people, but it's also a great way to get involved in the local community," said Trinity Hundredmark, who works for Andersen, Tate, & Carr and leads hYPe's community involvement work crew. "Most young professionals are coming from college or graduate school where getting involved was easy and sometimes even mandatory. In the real world, getting involved and giving back to the community can be overwhelming at first. Where does one start? hYPe has helped me to find answers to those questions. By always keeping me informed of the latest activities going on in Gwinnett County, I can always find a way to get involved and meet new people."

For more information on hYPe, visit www.hypegwinnett.com.

AN INTERVIEW WITH… Peter Andruszkiewicz, President of Kaiser Permanente Georgia

Kaiser Permanente is Georgia's largest not-for-profit health plan. With approximately 230,000 members in metro Atlanta and 8.6 million nationwide, Kaiser Permanente is recognized as one of America's leading health care providers. And its mission is clear: Provide high-quality, affordable health care to improve the health of its members and the communities it serves.

Guided by expert teams of physicians, specialists and health care providers with The Southeast Permanente Medical Group, Kaiser Permanente provides care focused on its members' total health and supported by industry-leading technology and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, as well as state-of-the art delivery. Providing a superior member experience is at the core of the organization's values.

At the helm of Kaiser Permanente Georgia is President Peter Andruszkiewicz. A seasoned health care executive, Andruszkiewicz spent 18 years at CIGNA HealthCare before joining Kaiser Permanente in 2005 as vice president, National Accounts. In 2006, he became senior vice president, Health Plan Operations for regions outside California. He was named President of Kaiser Permanente Georgia in late 2008.

In the local community, Andruszkiewicz serves as chair of the Henry W. Grady Health System Foundation board. He also sits on the boards of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, the Woodruff Arts Center, and the Metro Atlanta YMCA. He is a member of the Board of Councilors of The Carter Center and a member of the Buckhead Coalition. He is a graduate of Springfield College in Massachusetts and serves on its board of trustees.

Healthcare is one of five targeted industries in Partnership Gwinnett, the community and economic development initiative led by the Gwinnett Chamber to bring jobs and investment to the Greater Atlanta region. Andruszkiewicz shares Kaiser Permanente's expansion plans in metro Atlanta, which include new medical facilities as well as community involvement initiatives in Gwinnett.

Creating Jobs & Wealth

Q. Kaiser Permanente recently opened a new medical office in Lawrenceville, which was the third office to open this year in the metro Atlanta area. What are some of the factors that have led to these recent expansions in Gwinnett and metro Atlanta?

Our strategy is to provide members with more convenient access to Kaiser Permanente's high quality, coordinated health care system. By locating our new medical offices throughout metro Atlanta all of our members will be within a 20-minute drive of one of our facilities. Since announcing our expansion plans last year, we have opened four new medical offices, bringing our total to 23. Three additional medical offices are scheduled to open in the fall, including our fourth location in Gwinnett County in Snellville. We will add even more new facilities in 2011 as we continue to expand.

Growing Your Business

Q. Partnership Gwinnett research indicated that Gwinnett has significant potential for growth in the healthcare industry. How has Gwinnett's pro-business environment for healthcare businesses helped Kaiser Permanente expand in the local market?

Gwinnett is a thriving area. With an increasing number of our members living and working in Gwinnett, Kaiser Permanente wants to have a strong presence in the community. The tremendous support we have received from across the county has enabled us to expand and provide our members with convenient, high-quality coordinated care in difficult economic times.

Strengthening the Community

Q. As an investor in Partnership Gwinnett, why did Kaiser Permanente choose to support this community and economic development initiative? What are some of the other ways that Kaiser Permanente is involved in the local community?

We want to be a part of the community and we know that what is good for Gwinnett County is also good for Kaiser Permanente. Partnership Gwinnett is a great opportunity to provide support where we know it will have significant impact. We're also proud to sponsor the Gwinnett Chamber Chairman's Club Golf Tournament and the Lawrenceville Music Concert Series.

Kaiser Permanente is Georgia's largest non-profit health plan and one of our core values has always been to improve the health of communities, as well as the health of our members. For 25 years, we have invested millions of dollars back into communities as a part of our Community Benefit program. We partner with local non-profits, universities and local health departments to improve access to health care, train medical professionals and develop programs that promote healthy living. We work to address the root causes of poor health, and provide services to support healthier lifestyles, especially to under -served communities. This year we are investing nearly $30 million dollars in the community.

As part of our community benefit program, over the last two years, we've donated more than $260,000 to Gwinnett County organizations including Lawrenceville Cooperative Ministry, AID Gwinnett, the Hope Clinic, the Visiting Nurse Health System, and others.