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ABOUT
GREATER THAN

The Greater Than County Youth Collective is made up of people who care for, work for, or are youth, working toward raising high school graduation rates in PEC. Working together we are Greater Than the sum of our parts.

MISSION.

Our areas of focus are youth empowerment; well-being; relationships with caregivers, family, and peers; enhancing education supports; and helping youth see the connection between their education and future employment. 

 

We are strengthening the network of organizations in the community so that we can respond to the unique needs of County youth using a collaborative approach.  We want to create a community culture that embraces learning and personal development and enables everyone to reach their potential. Our goal is to have graduation rates at parity with the provincial average by 2026.

 

We identify the needs of PEC youth, spread the word to our Collective partners, and initiate action in the community to address issues and barriers communicated by youth. We engage youth to share their voice in a meaningful way through surveys, conversations, focus groups, and data parties. The information gathered through this process is compiled and analyzed by The Students Commission of Canada and then turned into a report!

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Greater Than County Youth Collective strives to empower youth voices for systems change in Prince Edward County through youth & community connection. Our sustainability plans are based on building the youth network we started to establish (through digital strategies and free youth events and sponsorships) to provide youth consulting, co-design and research in PEC.

HISTORY.

In 2013, the County Foundation (TCF) produced a Vital Signs report that provided a snapshot of the community and raised awareness of its successes and challenges. This report was based on a collection of quantitative and qualitative data from municipal, provincial, and federal sources, and community conversations. The report pointed to opportunities for collaboration to analyze and address problems.

 

An advisory committee prioritized three key areas for immediate action: Learning, Food Insecurity, and Transportation. Working groups defined priorities and projects in each of the three areas. The Vital Signs Learning working group, with members from 15 local organizations, articulated a vision “to create a community culture that embraces learning and personal development and enables everyone to reach their potential.” The group has met on a regular basis since 2013, and in the early days focused on relationship-building and gaining awareness of services available in the community.

 

 A driving force for the group was the knowledge that graduation rates in PEC are well below the provincial average. Conscious of the complex, long-standing nature of this issue, the group came to embrace a Collective Impact approach for reaching the goal of increasing the PEC graduation rate to parity with the provincial average by 2026, which was seen as a key indicator of progress toward the group’s vision.

LEADERSHIP.

Greater Than is governed by a youth-led Steering Committee that meets monthly. Meetings and agenda items are led by youth members. Adult allies sit on the Steering Committee to provide support and guidance. Youth or adult allies wanting to join or learn more are encouraged to contact us. 

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Steering Committee: Kiydan Zachariah, Jennifer Armstrong, Christian Everall, and Hailey and Holli Claxton. Adult allies: Julianne Snepts, Jocelyn Whattam, Brock Warner. 

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More broadly, Greater Than is supported by a Leadership Table of community members, agencies, and organizations. Leadership Table meetings and membership is open to anyone, and is the primary way of sharing learnings and strengthening the collective impact of our work. Please contact us today if you want to be added to the invite list for future Leadership Table meetings. 

APPROACH.

Developed in collaboration with local youth, you can see our "Plan on a Page" below, or download a PDF version here. 

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FUNDERS.

Greater Than is made possible in part by Tamarack Communities Building Youth Futures. This program is a collective impact and systems-wide solutions for youth as they build and act upon plans for their future. 

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Communities Building Youth Futures is committed to improving outcomes for youth who face barriers as they pursue their education and transition to employment and understands that this work requires collaborative, community-championed solutions with youth leadership and youth engagement. 

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HOST AGENCY.

Greater Than is a project currently hosted and fiscally sponsored by the Prince Edward Learning Centre (PELC) in Picton, Ontario. As host agency, PELC provides a variety of resources, guidance, administrative support and physical space for Greater Than activities. As fiscal sponsor, PELC is able accept donations and issue charitable donation receipts for gifts to support Greater Than activities. 

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LOCAL PARTNERS.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to our local community partners from throughout Prince Edward County who are contributing to our ongoing success and sustainability. 

SHAPING OUR COUNTY

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