Statement from Veronica Melvin - Incoming President and Chief Executive Officer of LA's Promise

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Veronica Melvin, Chief Operating Officer of Communities for Teaching Excellence, reflects today on her selection and appointment to the position of president and CEO of LA's Promise by the members of the Board of Directors of LA's Promise:

"I am grateful to the LA's Promise Board of Directors for selecting me to undertake this tremendous opportunity and placing their confidence in me to lead their trailblazing organization. I am excited and energized by the challenge that stands before me.

"My first order of business will be to meet with its incredible staff and confer with its dedicated team of teachers and administrators who are firmly committed to the mission we must all work to achieve – to radically shift the education, health and social outcomes for thousands of young people in the LA's Promise community in South Los Angeles.

"Where we see problems, we will fix them. Where we see successes, we will grow them and share them with our colleagues throughout the L.A. school system.

"I have no illusion about the task before me. I know this work is complex and will at times be tough. But I will be working with a solid team of professionals who are joined in our mission by enthusiastic community stakeholders. Collectively, we appreciate the value of hard work and we know our focused efforts and unwillingness to fail will produce the positive results we all expect and that our young people deserve."

Ms. Melvin will leave her present position as Chief Operating Officer of Communities for Teaching Excellence in mid-November to assume her new post as head of LA's Promise. She reflected on her personal bond to education:

"Since I was a young child, I've always had a strong desire for learning.   Although I must admit that as a youth, I didn't fully realize the value that a quality education would play in propelling me forward as a person and as a professional.  

"Fortunately, I had a mother who did.  Despite only having a 6th grade education herself, my mother knew that an outstanding education was essential for her children to experience a good quality of life and to overcome any of the barriers that we might encounter.

"I was also blessed to have an amazing string of high quality teachers from kindergarten through high school, all in the public education system. Those teachers always challenged and supported me to perform at the highest levels.

"My experience at the college and graduate levels within the state's public education system were just as enriching, and I continue to believe that education is vital for personal and professional growth.

"I have a great desire to enable others to benefit as I have from strong education, to see what I've seen through constant learning, so they may use their knowledge, skills and experiences to achieve their dreams. I look forward to working with parents, teachers and community partners to ensure every child in LA's Promise Neighborhood is college ready, healthy and successful in life."

LA's Promise is a nonprofit organization working to radically shift the education, health and social outcomes for thousands of youth in one South Los Angeles community. LA's Promise transforms chronically failing public schools, opens new schools and remakes schools into community hubs that offer comprehensive support services for students and families. LA's Promise will prepare every child in LA's Promise Neighborhood to be college-ready, healthy and successful in life. For more information on LA's Promise, please go to www.laspromise.org.

Contact:
Fred MacFarlane, (213) 369-8425
Nichol Whiteman, (213) 745-4928, ext. 5121

SOURCE LA's Promise