Great Kids make Great Communities

What Great Kids make Great Communities does

Great KIDS make Great COMMUNITIES is a 501(c)-style non-profit youth development initiative founded in 1999 in Allen County, Indiana, operating with a lean team of approximately 5 staff supplemented by a cross-sector Community Advisory Board. Its mission is to train the adults who work with young people in evidence-based positive youth development practices, using Search Institute's 40 Developmental Assets framework as the foundational curriculum. The organization operates as a capacity-building intermediary rather than a direct service provider; it does not run youth programs itself but instead equips schools, social service agencies, healthcare providers, and community organizations with the training, credentials, and frameworks needed to improve youth outcomes.

The organization delivers its programming through a portfolio of recurring events and structured learning experiences. The flagship is the Annual Conference on Youth, Families & Communities, a one-day regional training event entering its 37th year in 2026 and hosted at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Complementary offerings include the Great KIDS Leadership Academy (a multi-session program awarding Continuing Education Certificates from Purdue University Fort Wayne), the Indiana Mental Health Summit (a statewide event co-sponsored with Parkview Health, Bowen Center, and RemedyLIVE), the free Great Communities Lecture Series, a rolling Training & Events Calendar of $5–$40 professional development workshops, and a video podcast library. Great KIDS holds a Category 1 Continuing Education Unit (CEU) license through Indiana's Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board, qualifying its training for LSW, LCSW, LMHC, and LMFT license renewal.

The business model is a hybrid of grant funding and modest earned revenue. Foundation grants constitute the primary financial base, with the Foellinger Foundation explicitly credited as a key funder of the Annual Conference. Earned revenue is generated through event registration fees ($5–$40 per session for most workshops; some free events), continuing education certificate programs, and invoice/purchase order arrangements for organizational buyers. Distribution is primarily in-person at partner venues across Allen County (Allen County Public Library, Purdue Fort Wayne, University of Saint Francis, Northeast Indiana Innovation Center) with select virtual delivery via RemedyLIVE. The organization is independently managed but housed within the YMCA of Greater Fort Wayne administrative building under a 2020 partnership arrangement. Geographic focus is Allen County, Indiana, with the Mental Health Summit representing the first explicit move into statewide delivery.

Name

Great Kids make Great Communities

Legal name

Great KIDS make Great COMMUNITIES

Website

https://greatkidsallencounty.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Great KIDS make Great COMMUNITIES is a non-profit youth development initiative in Allen County, Indiana that trains youth-serving professionals through Search Institute's 40 Developmental Assets framework, delivering an annual conference, leadership academy, mental health summit, and continuing education workshops for educators, social workers, and community leaders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Development Training Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Mental Health, Counseling & Wellbeing (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAK), K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

Keywords

• Youth development training
• Professional development workshops
• Community education programs
• Continuing education services
• Positive youth development

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Wayne

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: Primary funding comes from foundation grants, with Foellinger Foundation explicitly mentioned as a key supporter of the Annual Conference on Youth.
2. Event Registration Fees: Revenue generated from training events and conferences, with varying registration fees ranging from free to $40 per session.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Great KIDS make Great COMMUNITIES is a non-profit youth development initiative in Allen County, Indiana that trains youth-serving professionals and community members in positive youth development using Search Institute's 40 Developmental Assets framework. It delivers this through its flagship Annual Conference on Youth, Families & Communities, the Indiana Mental Health Summit, the Leadership Academy, free public lectures, and a calendar of professional development workshops offering Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for licensed social workers, counselors, and therapists.

Product overview

Great Kids make Great Communities is a non-profit youth development initiative based in Allen County, Indiana, that operates as a single integrated program rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The organization's core offering centers on the 40 Developmental Assets framework from Search Institute, which serves as the foundation for all programming. Key products and services include the Annual Conference on Youth, Families & Communities (the flagship training event), the Indiana Mental Health Summit, the Great Communities Lecture Series, the Leadership Academy (offering CEUs in partnership with Purdue University Fort Wayne), video podcasts featuring expert content, and a Training & Events Calendar of professional development workshops. All offerings are designed to train youth workers in positive youth development concepts, support youth-serving organizations, and create household recognition for the 40 Developmental Assets.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Annual Conference on Youth, Families & Communities Flagship annual training conference that brings together youth development professionals to receive training on strengths-based practices, with national speakers, networking opportunities, and Continuing Education Unit credits.
• Indiana Mental Health Summit Statewide mental health summit convening professionals, advocates, faith leaders, educators, and community members to explore approaches to mental health challenges affecting youth and families.
• Great Communities Lecture Series

Quantifiable outcome

• Continuing Education Units (CEUs) provided for LSW, LCSW, LMHC, and LMFT licensure through Category One of the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• YMCA of Greater Fort WaynecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020In 2020, Great KIDS joined forces with the YMCA of Greater Fort Wayne and moved into their administrative building as an independent entity managed by the YMCA. This partnership provides office space and administrative support.
• Search InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSearch Institute developed the 40 Developmental Assets framework in 1990. Great KIDS adopted this framework as their foundational tool and became a licensed provider of these resources and training materials.
• Purdue University Fort WaynecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPurdue University Fort Wayne provides Continuing Education Certificates to participants who complete the Great KIDS Leadership Academy program.
• Allen County Superior CourtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreat KIDS began as a project of Allen Superior Court, Family Relations Division in 1999. The court continues to be represented on the Community Advisory Board through Hon. Lori Morgan.
• Parkview HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSponsor of the Youth Mental Health Summit alongside Great KIDS, Bowen Center, RemedyLIVE, and Purdue Fort Wayne. Dr. Sarah GiaQuinta from Parkview Health presented at Moving Upstream training event.
• Bowen CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsor of the Youth Mental Health Summit and provider of therapists for conference sessions. Part of multi-organization mental health initiative.
• RemedyLIVEcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Youth Mental Health Task Force and co-sponsor of mental health events. Provides virtual training platform for some Great KIDS sessions.
• Allen County Public LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides venue for training sessions and community events including the Great Communities Lecture Series.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• YMCA of Greater Fort Wayne: Host and administrative partner for Great KIDS since 2020, with overlapping youth, family, and community programming across Allen County. Operates broader health and wellness services but shares the youth and family development segment.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne: Local chapter providing out-of-school programming for youth in Fort Wayne/Allen County. Directly comparable regional youth development provider with overlapping funder and partner networks.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana: Regional mentoring and youth development nonprofit serving the same Allen County / northeast Indiana market as Great KIDS. Operates with a similar mission of building positive youth outcomes through adult-youth relationships.
• Youth First, Inc. Indiana-based nonprofit placing social workers in schools to support youth mental health and family services. Comparable youth-focused mission with overlapping professional development and prevention-training components.
• Indiana Youth Institute: Statewide nonprofit that provides training, research, and resources to youth-serving professionals across Indiana. Closely aligned mission and delivery model to Great KIDS's training and CEU work, scaled statewide.

Broad incumbents

• National 4-H Council: National positive youth development organization grounded in a research-based framework. Operates at much greater scale across the U.S. with overlapping philosophy around asset-based youth development, similar to the Search Institute assets Great KIDS delivers.
• Junior Achievement USA: National youth education nonprofit delivering work-readiness, financial literacy, and entrepreneurship programs in schools, with regional Indiana chapters. Broader scope than Great KIDS but serves a similar youth and educator audience with structured curriculum.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of America: National mentoring and youth development nonprofit with a Northeast Indiana affiliate. Operates a larger portfolio nationally but shares Great KIDS's relationship-based, asset-building approach to youth outcomes.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America: National youth services organization with a Fort Wayne affiliate. Provides a broader portfolio of youth programming nationally but shares Great KIDS's mission of building developmental assets and positive outcomes for youth.

Others

• Search Institute: Developer of the 40 Developmental Assets framework that Great KIDS licenses and delivers. Functions as the methodology and content enabler for Great KIDS's core program rather than a direct service competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/great-kids-make-great-communities

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Great Kids make Great Communities