OCTOBER 10, 2024 – COVINGTON, KENTUCKY – At its 25th Silver Anniversary Gala held on September 27, Covington Partners celebrated 25 years of making a difference in the community by announcing an exciting new milestone: a new name. Effective immediately, Covington Partners will now be known as Partners for Change, marking the beginning of a new chapter that better reflects the organization’s mission, growth, and vision for the future.
After extensive community feedback and careful consideration, the organization has chosen a name that encapsulates its legacy while paving the way forward. For 25 years, “Partners” has been at the heart of the organization, serving as a partner in prevention, education, wellness, and family engagement to the Covington Independent School District.
With this new identity, Partners for Change aims to expand its impact beyond the Covington community. The organization’s vision is for every child to be Hopeful, Supported, and Ready, regardless of their school district or community, therefore Partners for Change has been working to expand their reach beyond the neighborhoods of Covington and into other River City School Districts and beyond.
Since its inception in 1999, Partners for Change has positively impacted the Covington community by offering mentoring, out-of-school time and family engagement programming. In the 2023 – 2024 school year alone, 319 students were coupled with volunteer mentors to serve as a positive adult role model and 93% of mentored students reported an increased level of self-confidence. Additionally, 1,799 students attended out-of-school time programming in Covington with 91% of those participants saying that programming helps them stay out of trouble.
“Our commitment to expanding the reach of our programming has already begun,” said Phyllis Yeager, Partners for Change Board Chair. “In fact, over the past school year, we expanded our services to provide a variety of programming that may include mentoring, family engagement, and out-of-school-time programming to students not only in Covington Independent Public Schools but also in Newport Independent, Ludlow, and Erlanger-Elsmere School Districts. This growth is a testament to our dedication to serving even more students and families who need our support.”
The decision to embrace the word “change” in the new name is intentional. Change is about transformation—engaging in new experiences, altering perspectives, and turning visions into reality. Partners for Change embodies this spirit, helping students and families grow, adapt, and thrive.
While the name may be changing, the organization’s mission remains steadfast. Partners for Change will continue creating safe and engaging environments for students and families to learn and grow, staying true to the values that have guided it for the past 25 years.
“We are simply evolving, and our name is evolving with us to better represent the impact we have today and the future we envision,” added Phyllis Yeager.
Partners for Change looks forward to continuing its partnership with the community and making an even greater impact in the years to come.
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About Partners for Change
Founded in 1999 to reduce drug abuse and violence among Covington youth, Partners for Change, formerly Covington Partners, has since expanded offerings to include a variety of mentoring, family strengthening, and physical/mental health programs. Partners for Change provides wrap-around support services to River City students in every stage of their educational journey, working every day to keep our community moving forward by eliminating boundaries to learning and success. Through a Community Learning Center method, Partners for Change works to bring together key community stakeholders, including students, families, partner organizations, funders, staff, board members, mentors and volunteers to all work toward the goal of helping the youth of Northern Kentucky reach their full potential in school and in life. For more information, visit http://www.mycovingtonpartners.org.
