New Campaign from Boys & Girls Clubs: “America Needs Club Kids”
ATHENS, GA – August 27, 2025
Boys & Girls Clubs of Athens is proud to be part of a bold new national campaign launching this summer: America Needs Club Kids. The campaign from Boys & Girls Clubs of America is built on a simple idea: the America of tomorrow will be shaped by the way we invest in kids today. For more than 165 years, Boys & Girls Clubs across the country have been opening doors for kids and teens — helping them succeed in school, build life skills, discover passions and grow into confident leaders. Now, more than 5,500 Clubs are taking that message nationwide with a campaign designed to inspire more people to get involved.
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“At Boys & Girls Clubs of Athens, we see firsthand how kids thrive when they’re given support, encouragement and opportunities to lead,” said Dr. Shawonna Coleman, CEO of the organization. “This campaign is about helping everyone understand that investing in young people isn’t just important — it’s essential to our future.”
Boys & Girls Clubs of Athens Update on Audit Findings
ATHENS, GA – August 7, 2025
In December of last year, the Boys & Girls of Athens (BGCA) hired Dr. Shawonna Coleman as their new CEO. The organization immediately tasked her with initiating a full review of all funding sources, grants and contracts as well as club operations. This was a multi-month process which concluded in June of this year. Further and as a part of this initiative, the organization did joint reviews with Athens-Clarke County Housing & Community Development, which is the entity responsible for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) 2023 grant to the Boys & Girls Club. The audit concluded that over the life of the funding there was usage of funds outside of the scope of the initial ARPA contract but within the scope of a second ARPA contract that specifically supports the Youth Force workforce development program. BGCA is currently in a repayment agreement with Athens-Clarke County for reimbursements of funding from Youth Force ARPA funds and is in full compliance with that agreement. There were no findings of mismanagement or misappropriation of funds as such instances would cause immediate termination of payments.