BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA

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'Boys & Girls Clubs of America' (BGCA) is a national organization whose mission is to “enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.”

Contents

History

Membership

Notable members

Demographics

External links

History

The first Club was founded in 1860 by several women in Hartford, Connecticut, who believed that boys who roamed the streets should have a positive alternative. It was for boys only, and soon other communities in New England decided that such places would be good for their young men. In 1906, 53 independent Boys' Clubs, as they were known then, came together in Boston to form a national organization, the Federated Boys' Clubs, and in 1931 they became Boys Clubs of America. In 1956, the group was chartered by Congress. To reflect its increased service to young women, the organization became Boys & Girls Clubs of America in 1990. In 1996, Roxanne Spillett, current president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, was appointed.
2006 marked the national organization's centennial; 4,000 club professionals, local board volunteers and national staff celebrated this anniversary.
Boys & Girls Clubs of America has more than 4,000 autonomous local Clubs which are affiliates of the national organization. Clubs serve some 4.8 million young people – generally between the ages of 6 and 18 – through membership and community outreach, and are located in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and on U.S. military bases around the world. Professional Club staff total some 49,000 worldwide.
Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington, a former Club member, has been the spokesperson for Boys & Girls Clubs of America since 1993. [1]
In its latest "Philanthropy 400" report, The Chronicle of Philanthropy ranked Boys & Girls Clubs of America number one among youth organizations for the 13th consecutive year, and number 12 among all nonprofit organizations.

Membership

Notable members

Famous alumni (from the clubs' website):
Walter Anderson
John Antioco
Brooke Bennett
Larry Bossidy
Thomas Brasuell
Swin Cash
Gen. Wesley Clark
Bill Clinton
Jim Collins
Nick Collison
Bill Cosby
Neil Diamond
Jermaine Dye
Sean Elliott
Jamie Farr
Tony Gonzalez
Chamique Holdsclaw
Maureen Holohan
Evander Holyfield
Derek Jeter
Michael Jordan
Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Dr. Patrick Kelly
Kool & The Gang
Bob Lanier
Jennifer Lopez
Mario Lopez
Willie McGinest
Sen. George Mitchell
Joe Morgan
Edward James Olmos
Shaquille O'Neal
Bill Perocchi
Ed Pinckney
Lou Piniella
Ahmad Rashad
Harold Reynolds
Brig. Gen. Francis J. Roberts
Brooks Robinson
Smokey Robinson
Alex Rodriguez
Joan Benoit Samuelson
Gale Sayers
Junior Seau
Bernard Shaw
Martin Sheen
John Singleton
Dennis Smith
Ruben Studdard
Frank Thomas
Maj. Gen. Alfred A. Valenzuela
Courtney B. Vance
Michael Vick
Mark Wahlberg
Bill Walton
Denzel Washington
Kerry Washington
Lenny Wilkens
Dontrelle Willis
David L. Wolper
Martin Wong
James Worthy

Demographics

Gender
:55% male
:45% female
Ages
:11% under 7
:26% 7-9
:30% 10-12
:21% 13-15
:11% 16-18
:1% over 18
Ethnicity
:36% Caucasian
:31% African-American
:21% Hispanic/Latino
:6% Multi-racial
:3% Asian
:3% Native American

External links

Boys & Girls Clubs of America Web site

★ Boys and Girls Clubs of America website