aboutus

In the fall of 1988, a man barricaded himself in his home and threatened to kill himself. He was drawing attention to what he perceived to be a lack of concern for the drug problem in Burlington. He had attempted to obtain help for a son with a drug problem but had difficulty, both with finding the help he wanted and with people taking himself seriously. City officials and people from the media came to Woodlands Treatment Center and ADDS looking for a response.Representatives from ADDS, Woodlands Treatment Center and Southeastern Community College coordinated a town meeting which was sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce's Quality of Life Committee.

The town meeting was held on November 14, 1988. Approximately 150 community members attended. The focus was a panel representing the courts, schools, government, youth, community services, churches, police, media, and the treatment center. At the meeting a three-year plan was adopted to address the problem of substance abuse in Des Moines County.

At the town meeting, the task force's name was also unveiled -GRADE A PLUS- Great River Alcohol and Drug Education Alliance and Parents Linked in United Support.

In January of 1989, GRADE A PLUS volunteers and a representative from the Southeast Regional Planning Commission, met to write what they hoped would be a grant to get GRADE A PLUS off the ground. The grant was funded and they were able to begin an annual process of recruiting members of all parts of the community to participate in their first event, Community Mobilization Training, an event held to begin planning and strategies on how to combat substance abuse in the community.

In 1990, through the direction of GRADE A PLUS, Burlington and West Burlington became the first SAFE Certified Communities in Iowa.

In 1991, GRADE A PLUS was incorporated as a non-profit corporation.

In 1998, GRADE A PLUS sponsored a youth retreat. From the beginning, the youth on the retreat planning committee identified conflict resolution skills as a need in their schools and homes. At the retreat, 30 youth were trained in conflict resolution skills, and they determined that a program was needed to carry these skills to other students in their schools. Hence, Seeds Amongst the Stones was born. It is our belief that programs, such as this, which are conceived and driven by students, carry a greater likelihood of success with the students. The primary goal of Seeds Amongst the Stones, a program of GRADE A PLUS, is to reduce acts of violence in the home, in our schools, and in our community. The more awareness and prevention that we can provide the less we will see in suspensions, expulsions, drop outs, and out of home placements. We hope to accomplish this through a combination of programs and activities that will impact others and change attitudes and practices underlying violent behavior.

In 1999 it was voted to have GRADE A PLUS join forces with the Community Civility Task Force in an effort to further expand their missions in making Des Moines County a safer place to live and work.

In 2000, GRADE A PLUS and the Community Civility Task Force merged committees to create one group focused on healthy lifestyles for the community youth and families, which encompass the issue of drug and alcohol abuse. GRADE A PLUS adopted the 40 Developmental Assets as a foundation to GRADE A PLUS and modified our logo to reflect a community as one promoting Healthy Community and Healthy Youth.

In 2001 it was decided that our organization would leave from under the umbrella of the Chamber of Commerce and begin steps toward independence. It was in January 2001 that the GRADE A PLUS office relocated within the Burlington YMCA. With both of our mission statements focused on family, youth and community our programs move in the same direction.

In May of 2001, GRADE A PLUS was re-certified as a SAFE Community and posted SAFE signs at the entrances of Burlington and West Burlington.

In April of 2002 GRADE A PLUS had the good fortune to move to the Great River Medical Center. This move allowed GRADE A PLUS to accommodate additional staff, storage and host committee meetings. The opportunity to collaborate with Great River Medical Center has been helpful in promoting healthy lifestyles in our community.