Mary Burns, President & CEO of the Greater Burlington YMCA, has recently been appointed to two committees with national reach by YMCA of the USA (Y-USA)—the national resource office for the Y.
The first committee—the Government Relations Advisory Committee—guides Y-USA’s Government Relations and Policy Office on issues and challenges that have an impact on the YMCA movement as a whole. In the coming year, legislative priorities for the committee include: Restoring funding from the CDC’s Healthy Communities Program — which helps build communities’ capacity to make policy and environmental changes in support of healthy living and physical activity; Increasing funding from the Child Care Development Block Grants — which helps working families across the country to access affordable, quality child care; By addressing these priorities, the Government Relations Advisory Committee hopes to increase the capacity of the Y to strengthen communities across the nation through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Burns is one of only five YMCA CEOs to serve on the committee (nationally, there are more than 2,600 branch executives); her term will be for two
years.
Burns has also been appointed to Y-USA’s Membership Support and Program Services Advisory Board—which leads the process of developing critical resources required by YMCAs of all sizes to strengthen their effectiveness in addressing matters of social significance. Key focus areas in 2011 include chronic disease prevention; workplace wellness; and addressing America’s educational achievement gap in low-income communities. Burns will serve for three years and will be integral to identifying and recommending best-practice program models for adoption across the Y movement.
“I’m honored to serve Y-USA in this capacity,” says Burns, who became President & CEO of the Greater Burlington Y after 21 years in the organization. “I look forward to bringing a fresh perspective—based in solid experience—to the discussions at hand, and to collaborating with my peers in ways that bring meaningful change to individuals and communities across the country.”