I have to admit, my retirement has involved more work than I ever imagined, but it’s a blessing! For local families, the summer break from school is upon us. It’s a wonderful time for our teachers and students to rest, recover and relax from the busy school year which just wrapped up. While taking a break from the school year is important, the work of Achieve Escambia continues on!

A new chapter for Achieve Escambia

Just as there has been change in my life, the winds of change are moving in Achieve Escambia. We are proud to announce the hiring of Kimberly Krupa, as our new Director. Kimberly brings more than 15 years of nonprofit management, fundraising and strategic planning to Achieve Escambia.

I am excited about Kimberly’s hire because of her experience working with collective impact organizations. As we work to improve results in the cradle to career spectrum, I always want to remind our friends and partners that Achieve Escambia is not a program, but a movement. Achieve Escambia is working to bring our community together, to align efforts to better prepare our children for success. It reminds me of Proverbs 11:14 which says, “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.”

Kimberly Krupa brings important experience and leadership to our team, and we are excited about this next chapter in this long-term effort.

Right now, Achieve Escambia’s Kindergarten Readiness effort is underway. Those who help prepare children with a strong foundation for starting school are gearing up to remind parents of benefits of participating in voluntary prekindergarten (VPK).  The VPK program is free to all 4 year olds whose birthday falls on or before September 1, 2017 and it’s designed to help kids improve their reading, math, language and social skills. Click here to learn more about VPK in Escambia County. This is just one important way we, as a community, can help more kids be on track for the start of kindergarten and remain on track as they advance through school.

Last month I was proud to help celebrate the opening of the new Brownsville Community Center. The Board of County Commissioners and their team have done a great job of renovating the building that used to belong to the Brownsville Assembly of God. The old saying goes, you can tell a lot about someone’s priorities by where they spend their money. Well, our county has prioritized community centers where people of all ages can come together to learn, exercise or fellowship together.

David Alexander, III
Chief of Pensacola Police Department (Retired) and At-Large member of the Achieve Escambia Leadership Council