D2 Center directors Greg Emmel and Carolyn Miller and Youth Academic Navigator (YAN) Kelsey Hansen attended the 2017 Western Regional Reengagement Plus! Convening in Tacoma, WA, December 6-8, 2017. As always the conference provided excellent networking opportunities and many chances to share best practices, along with site visits to different locations around Washington State where we could observe reengagement in action. In addition to in-depth discussion sessions with reengagement colleagues from across the Western U.S., we heard from speakers Carla J Santorno (Superintendent, Tacoma Public Schools), Chris Reykdal (Washington State Superintendent), and Mayor of Tacoma Marilyn Strickland — plus, as always, our fearless leader, Andrew Moore, who spearheads the National League of Cities Reengagement Network, of which we’ve been a part since 2011. Here’s more about the Washington State Open Doors Youth Reengagement system – it was wonderful to see all the coordinated reengagement efforts underway across the state.

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Last week, co-director Greg Emmel and I were in Dubuque, IA, for the fifth annual National League of Cities Reengagement Plus! Convening. This year’s host, Reengage Dubuque, is a partnership between the Dubuque Community School District, Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC), and Project HOPE (through the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque). We got to see these reengagement efforts in action through site visits (Dubuque Senior High School, Hempstead High School, Alternative Learning Center, and Reengage Dubuque at NICC), presentations, and discussions. Dubuque provides an excellent example of partnerships making a real impact. Best of all we got to hear from several students themselves about how Reengage Dubuque has helped them make positive changes in their lives.

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The 2014 Reengagement Plus Convening was held in Portland, Oregon on December 10 and 11. The gathering of 250 people from 38 communities in 22 states included site visits to Portland’s Reconnection Center as well as a variety of alternative schools in the Portland School District.  D2 Center Board President Jerry Bexten provided the welcome to the group at the opening session and Andrew Moore of the National League of Cities provided the keynote address. A variety of topics were discussed at the convening including best practices for reengagement centers, governance, funding, data, partnerships, and integration of employment and training, to name a few. The blurry photo shows Portland Mayor Charlie Hales addressing the group at City Hall as Andy Moore of the National League of Cities looks on.  Also attending from the D2 Center were Executive Director Greg Emmel and Intake Specialist and Youth Academic Navigator Netta Prince.

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