GNO, Inc. Sunday Night Highlight – With Historic Safety and Youth Investment, the NOLA Coalition Marks 4th Anniversary đź’ž
Last week marked four years since the launch of The NOLA Coalition, the largest and most diverse civic alliance in New Orleans history. The NOLA Coalition was founded in the summer of 2022 by GNO, Inc. and partners, in response to a wave of violence in New Orleans.
The NOLA Coalition was founded on a simple yet profound premise:  the need to combine safety today, with investing in our youth for the future. The results, per the Metropolitan Crime Commission, speak for themselves:
- Nearly 70% decrease in homicides since 2022
- 65% decrease in shootings
- 79% decrease in carjackings
Violent crime in New Orleans has fallen to its lowest level since 1969. Importantly, this improvement in public safety does not just mirror the national trend – New Orleans is improving 50% faster than the US average.
“The NOLA Coalition shows what happens when we work together to support our community,” says founding member Kim Boyle. “Similar to our united commitment to rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, the Coalition shows what we can do when the entire community comes together to create irresistible momentum for positive change.”
A range of factors are credited for New Orleans’Â public safety progress, including:
- City/State/Federal partnerships
- Proactive policing
- Constitutional use of technology
- Focus on solving violent felonies
- Nation-leading improvement in public school performance
- Community, nonprofit, and faith-based leadership, including the NOLA Coalition
“In a time of crisis reminiscent of the Post-Katrina years, citizens from every neighborhood joined with business and civic leadership to launch the NOLA Coalition,” says founding member Greg Rusovich. “New Orleanians rallied to ensure public safety and robust youth programs. The foundation and insistence on change began with a partnership between neighborhoods and business and civic leadership. Make no mistake, the power of community is unstoppable.”
Alongside public safety, the Coalition and partners have raised nearly $12.5 million for youth investment. Recent funding beneficiaries have included Heroes of New Orleans, Youth Empowerment Project, and The 18th Ward.
“The work of the NOLA Coalition has been remarkable and has shown all of us that meaningful change happens when people from every sector come together around a shared purpose,” says Slade Simons, President of Gulf Coast Bank & Trust, which recently made a $25,000 challenge grant for youth investment.
You can help meet that challenge grant by donating here.
