Healthy Eating Not So Great Among Children, Community Can Help

Only one-third of parents of children ages 4-18 feel they’re succeeding at fostering healthy eating habits in their kids, according to a recent national survey.  The University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health found that just over half of parents believe their children eat mostly healthy, and only one in six parents rate their children’s diets as “very nutritious,” according to a press release. A fourth of parents polled said their child’s diet is “somewhat or not healthy at all.” Common challenges – not surprisingly - get in the way, according to experts: price, picky eaters and convenience.

“Most parents understand that they should provide healthy food for their children, but the reality of work schedules, children’s activities and different food preferences can make meal preparation a hectic and frustrating experience,” poll co-director Sarah Clark explained. “The tension between buying foods children like, and buying foods that are healthy, can be an ongoing struggle. Many of us know the feeling of spending time and money on a healthy meal only to have our children grimace at the sight of it and not take a single bite.”

Other data from the poll – which involved 1,767 parents – include that one in five parents don’t think limiting their child’s intake of fast food or junk food is important, and that 16 percent said limiting sugary drinks is “somewhat or not important.”

In general, parents of teens were less worried about unhealthy eating habits compared to parents of younger children.

The C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health measures current national public opinion, perceptions and priorities regarding major health care issues and trends for U.S. children and people in their communities.

Also this month, the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut found that residents of one Maryland county bought fewer sugary drinks after a campaign to reduce the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages that included policy changes and public health outreach efforts.

The Rudd Center study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, is the first to use objective retail sales data to measure the effectiveness of a community-led campaign to reduce consumption of sugary drinks.

“This study demonstrates the power of a community-based public health campaign that combines health-supporting policy changes with extensive outreach. The residents of Howard County have been engaged in every phase of this effort and their commitment to switching their drinks showed up in the supermarket sales data,” said Marlene Schwartz, Director of the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, and the study’s lead author.

Beverages with added sugars are among the leading sources of empty calories—calories that supply little or no nutrients—for both children and adults, and overconsumption of sugar is associated with obesity and increased risk of heart disease.

The study’s key findings show that based on sales data from Howard County supermarkets:

• Sales of sugar-sweetened soda declined nearly 20 percent.
• Sales of 100 percent juice fell 15 percent.
• Sales of fruit drinks with added sugars fell a little more than 15 percent.

Comparing sales data in 2012, before the Howard County Unsweetened campaign, to sales data in 2015, researchers found notable declines in purchases over the three-year period.

In determining the campaign’s impact, researchers compared weekly beverage sales of top-selling brands in 15 Howard County supermarkets with a matched group of 17 supermarkets in southeastern Pennsylvania. The study did not include sales data from non-supermarket vendors such as convenience stores.

The Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at the University of Connecticut is a distinguished multi-disciplinary policy research center dedicated to promoting solutions to childhood obesity, poor diet, and weight bias through research and policy.  The study was funded primarily by the Horizon Foundation, with additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and from the Rudd Foundation to support data collection. Voices for Healthy Kids, a joint initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American Heart Association, is a strategic partner of both Howard County Unsweetened and Sugar Free Kids Maryland.

CT Ranks 5th in U.S. in Dental Health, Best in New England

The neighboring states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and North Dakota have the best dental health in the nation, but Connecticut and Massachusetts break the mid-west logjam, ranking fifth and sixth in a new survey of nearly two dozen dental-health related categories by the financial website WalletHub. Connecticut ranked second in a series of oral health categories and 17^th in a group of dental habits and care categories, according to the survey, resulting in the 5th place finish overall.  Connecticut and Massachusetts ranked one-two in the highest percentage of adults who visited a dentist in the past year, and Connecticut placed third, after New Hampshire and Pennsylvania, in the highest percentage of adolescents who visited a dentist in the past year.

Connecticut also topped the list in two additional categories:  Lowest Percentage of Adults Who Experienced Pain in the Past Year Due to Oral Condition and Lowest Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Among Adolescents.  The state also ranked in a tie for third for having the lowest percentage of elderly population with no natural teeth.

Data used to create the ranking were collected from U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Healthy Grid, American Dental Association, Health Resources & Services Administration, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and Oral Health America, according to WalletHub.

With the state’s ranking in the background, the Connecticut Oral Health Initiative (COHI) will host a session on health equity during Oral Health Day at the State Capitol on Wednesday, March 8, from 10 am to 3 pm in the Legislative Office Building.

Connecticut oral health-related organizations will on hand throughout the day to raise awareness and educate decision-makers and the public about policies to improve the oral health of Connecticut residents. The organization’s focus this year is on preserving Medicaid coverage for adults and children, allowing children to remain on their parents' dental insurance until age 26, and integrating oral health into health systems.

Other legislative initiatives include a proposal to increase the number of adults aged 19 to 26 years covered by dental insurance to provide continuity of dental care into adulthood, and another to decrease the incidence of oral and other cancers by decreasing tobacco use by Connecticut residents. By raising the Legal Age For Purchase and Use of Tobacco Products.

COHI leads and collaborates in statewide oral health advocacy efforts; promotes the necessity of oral health to overall health; serves as an expert resource on oral health policy; and publicizes oral health policy analysis and recommendations.

Also at the Capitol, the Department of Public Health is proposing a mandate for dental hygienists to have at least one contact hour in cultural competency prior to the renewal of their license, as part of the commitment to health equity.

PERSPECTIVE: Fighting Fake News in the Classroom

by Lorenzo Burgio The struggle to tell fact from fiction in the digital age is the battle being fought recently by teachers and professors.

A Stanford study recently found that students in middle school, high school and college, are bad at verifying the news read online — which is worrisome.

The ability to verify news is something that has to be practiced in the nation’s classrooms, said Professor Sam Wineburg, who produced research for the Stanford study, to NPR.

In the study, Wineburg explained that the concept becomes even more worrisome because “many people assume that because young people are fluent in social media, they are equally perceptive about what they find there.” This makes young people a major factor, because they are susceptible to believing fake news and more prone to spreading it.

“How do they become prepared to make the choices about what to believe, what to forward, what to post to their friends, when they’ve been given no practice in school?” said Wineburg to NPR.

This idea is becoming even more prominent as the media is constantly being attacked or used for personal agendas, and this is something educators are aware of.

This is also a responsibility that is falling more and more into the hands of teachers and professors, because “fewer schools now have librarians, who traditionally taught research skills,” explained The Wall Street Journal.

As Facebook works with the Associated Press and other organizations to ensure fake news is not spread throughout the social media platform, efforts in the classroom can also help tame the spread of fallacies on the Internet.

“Teachers from elementary school through college are telling students how to distinguish between factual and fictional news — and why they should care that there’s a difference,” wrote USA Today.

Encouraging and teaching the ability to sift out fake news in the nation’s classrooms is necessary. This ability is vital to becoming a functioning and involved member of society and can only benefit future voters.

California lawmakers passed a bill in January that requires the state to teach courses that help students between grades seven and 12 distinguish fact from fiction and understand the repercussions of spreading fake news.

The dynamics of these courses are specifically designed to have students combat fake news by knowing proper reporting techniques. They teach students to ask questions such as, “Are other news sites reporting on it? How is the writing? Can I find the people in the story elsewhere online?”

There is also be a special emphasis on using tools such as Snope.com and FactCheck.org to validate all information and to always think twice before sharing something on social media.

These courses should be taught nationwide. In a digital world that is only becoming increasingly technologically based, these are necessary skills that students should be properly educated in and to combat the spread and influence of fake news. It is particularly significant because the young social media users play such a large role in spreading fallacies due to their familiarity and expertise with social media, and the perceived notion that news shared by them is of the same stature.

Lorenzo Burgio is editor of Central Recorder, the student newspaper of Central Connecticut State University, where this column first appeared.  Published with permission.

Health Reform Efforts Earn CT a C+, Survey Says

Connecticut health care thought leaders have again given the state a C+ grade for health reform, as the state’s GPA dropped slightly  from 2.4 to 2.2. Connecticut’s grade for effort didn’t change from last year – holding steady at a B-/C+ (GPA 2.5) in the annual survey by the Connecticut Health Policy Project, as part of their efforts to increase public awareness of health care issues among state residents. Connecticut continues to earn higher marks for Medicaid and the health insurance exchange, according to the survey. Grades for patient-centered medical homes were down from recent years. Lowest marks went to efforts to address the health care workforce, the only area that received a D grade overall.

Unlike past years, thought leaders gave more C’s across the majority of issue areas, mirroring the overall grade for the first time. A new question assessing the level of trust between stakeholders in Connecticut health policymaking elicited low responses, averaging only 26 out of 100 possible points, with zero to ten being the most common response. Low trust scores were found in every stakeholder group.

The Connecticut Health Policy Project is a non-profit, non-partisan research and educational organization dedicated to improving access to affordable, quality health care for all Connecticut residents.

Sixty-one thought leaders across Connecticut’s health fields and sectors were surveyed online between December 20, 2016 and February 9, 2017. Forty-one (67%) responded. The invitation list was collected from membership of health-related state councils, board and committees, and leadership of health-related organizations.

Respondents represented community organizations, foundations, providers, payers, consumer advocates, labor, media, business people, insurance brokers, and academics. To ensure independent responses, state officials responsible for reform were not surveyed, officials said.

Collegiate Greek Life Leaders Descend on Hartford, Again

Hotel rooms were relatively scarce in downtown Hartford this past weekend as the Northeast Greek Leadership Association attracted about 1,000 college students involved in leading their campus fraternities and sororities to the Capitol City for the regional organization’s annual conference. The NGLA filled rooms at the Marriot and Hilton downtown, with overflow rooms at the Holiday Inn for the conference held at the Connecticut Convention Center, February 23 – 26.  The conference has become somewhat of a tradition in Hartford, held in the city in alternate years.

NGLA provides educational training and leadership development for collegiate fraternity and sorority members from college campuses across the northeast, and “builds community among students from a variety of fraternal experiences, challenges members to align their actions with fraternal values, and empowers advocates to transform and improve their communities,” the organization’s website points out.

“Hartford has always graciously welcomed our conference and its 1000+ conference attendees from across the northeast. We are thrilled to be back at the Convention Center,” said Emily Perlow, Chairman of the association’s Board of Directors. 

This year’s program highlights included education on motivating members, values based decision making, diversity and inclusion, and sexual assault prevention. Students, campus based professionals, national fraternity and sorority professionals and volunteers, as well as vendors and speakers attend the event, which offers a range of educational opportunities for participants.

The program also includes an Advisors Academy, which was recognized as an Outstanding Educational Program by the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors. There also is programming specifically for culturally based fraternities and sororities and local fraternities and sororities. In addition, opportunities to “sit with brothers and sisters from the region at the affiliation luncheon.”  The weekend culminates with a closing banquet during which NGLA Awards are presented, recognizing outstanding achievement.

Among the sessions held during the conference: Curiosity, Courage and Cake: Surviving Mental Illness Through Sisterhood; Know Better/Do Better: A Frank Talk About Campus Racism; and Retaking Our Story: Reframing the Sexual Assault Conversation.  Speakers providing insight for the student leaders address topics including: Be An Action Hero: The 4 Traits of High Impact Leaders; Why We Need to Talk with Our Members About Race and Every Student Needs to Know About Alcohol.

NGLA, which formed in 2011 with the merger of two fraternal organizations in the region, states as its vision:

• Fraternities and sororities in the northeast provide co-curricular learning experiences that prove to be essential in furthering the mission of their host institution
• Fraternities and sororities in the northeast are high performing and are looked to as a model of best practices
• Fraternities and sororities members in the northeast can articulate their founding principles, strive to live these principles, and challenge peers whose behavior is inconsistent with these principles.
• NGLA is known to members on every campus as a valuable resource that provides a demonstrated return on investment.

There were just over one thousand attendees at last year’s conference in Pittsburgh, PA.  The conference returns to Pittsburgh next year, and then will be back in Hartford in 2019.

10 CT Companies Are Finalists at Entrepreneur Innovation Awards, Three Receive Funds to Boost Growth

Fledgling entrepreneurial businesses in West Hartford, New Haven and Marlborough will be getting a financial boost in their efforts to gain a foothold in their respective industries. CTNext, Connecticut’s go-to resource for entrepreneurial support, announced the three winners of the most recent Entrepreneur Innovation Awards (EIA), held this month at the Connecticut Historical Society in Hartford.

The finalists, Connecticut-based companies and entrepreneurs, presented their innovative project ideas to a panel of entrepreneurial experts for an opportunity to secure $10,000 awards to help support business growth. The top winners, to receive $10,000 awards, were:

• GinzVelo Hybrid Electric Cycles (West Hartford): A personal transportation solution powered by pedaling or the electric motor to effortlessly travel up to 100 miles to and from your destination.
• Sweetflexx (Marlborough): Resistance technology active wear enables muscles to work more efficiently, resulting in a higher rate of calorie burn.  McCullough Shriver founded Sweetflexx. (see video below)
• Verb Energy Manufacturing (New Haven): A healthy, caffeinated, energy bar that combines your cup of coffee and an energy bar for less cost. Verb Energy  was founded in 2016 by four Yale students.

The “judges’ favorite” went to Sweetflexx, and the “crowd favorite” was awarded to Verb Energy.  Each business will receive an additional $2,000.

The other finalists included:

• Global Hydro Pneumatic High Tech Inventions (Shelton) Developing an all-wheel hydraulic power jack system that is safer and less damaging to cars.
• Loki (Woodbridge) Creating an app that gives users control over their own multi-perspective visual experience.
• Mobile Sense Technologies (Farmington) Engineering an “off-the-chest” ECG monitor for 24/7 management of cardiac arrhythmias.
• Obvia (West Hartford) Creating a lightweight, dual-winglet blade for small to mid-sized wind turbines that is both energy- and cost-efficient.
• Olie Robotics (Manchester) Building a professional robotic vacuum that cleans offices at a third of the cost with no labor hassles.
• PennSMART (North Branford) Producing a universal retrofit for lighting fixtures that allows surveillance and sends alert notifications.
• Trekeffect (Niantic) Creating an app that allows individuals to sell their travel itineraries.

“The Entrepreneur Innovation Awards seek to give new and growing companies the support they need to thrive,” said Glendowlyn Thames, executive director of CTNext. “Through these events, we have seen a number of incredible companies that are changing their respective industries and creating a positive economic impact in our state. These grants continue to support companies at the earliest stages of growth and to drive them to the next level of development.”

To be eligible for an EIA, startups must be Connecticut-based, registered as CTNext members, and looking to conduct growth-related activities to help advance their business. Project examples include but are not limited to prototyping, performance testing, compliance testing, product or service development, market research, licensing and more.

A full list of criteria can be found on the application page. For more information on the program or to apply, please visit: http://ctnext.com/entrepreneur-innovation-awards/.  CTNext launched in 2012 and has more than 1,500 members in its network, since initiating the awards program in February 2014 CTNext has awarded $544,000 to 52 companies.

The goal of CTNext is to build a more robust community of entrepreneurs and to accelerate startup growth by providing access to talent, space, industry expertise, services, skill development and capital to foster innovation and create jobs for people in Connecticut.

https://youtu.be/f7AxJz-KsUA

PERSPECTIVE: Just 3 of the JUST 100

by Larry Bingaman Quarterly earnings alone can no longer determine the success of corporate America – such assessment is shortsighted and has proven harmful to the well being of our economy and those who support it. According to Paul Tudor Jones^1, “…we as a society have come to view our companies and corporations in a very narrow, almost monomaniacal fashion with regard to how we value them, and we have put so much emphasis on profits, on short-term quarterly earnings and share prices, at the exclusion of all else. It's like we've ripped the humanity out of our companies.”

Stark words that hold much truth. Why do we as a society check our values and purpose at the door before entering the workplace? Why do we in the US have the greatest income inequality and the greatest social problems?¹ What are we doing to reverse this trend of unjust behavior in our corporations and companies?

I agree with Paul Tudor Jones – we must hold all companies accountable.¹ Through Tudor Jones’ JUST 100: America’s Best Corporate Citizens in 2016², he does JUST that. His research team surveyed 50,000 Americans on corporate behavior, ranking the largest 897 publically-traded companies within their industries according to the following 10 metrics: worker pay and benefits, worker treatment, supply chain impact, community well-being, domestic job creation, product attributes, customer treatment, leadership and ethics, environmental impact, and investor alignment.³

Interestingly, each of these metrics align with three of the four tenants of Conscious Capitalism, a business philosophy stating that business should exist to elevate humanity through higher purpose, conscious leadership, conscious culture, and stakeholder orientation. Of note, the JUST 100 study does not seem to capture whether the company embraces a higher purpose. It will be interesting to see if this driver is added as the study matures.

Three of the JUST 100 companies are headquartered here in Connecticut:

• FactSet Research Systems, Inc, ranking #2 out of 23 Consumer & Diversified Finance companies;
• Cigna, ranking #2 out of 27 Health Care Providers & Services companies; and
• Terex, ranking #2 out of 32 Machinery companies.

In FactSet’s category of Consumer & Diversified Finance companies, American Express ranked first while Capital One Financial ranked third. FactSet’s JUST Strengths included worker pay and benefits, paying its workers above the industry average and having the employees themselves highly rate company benefits such as healthcare, paid time off, and free working lunch in its offices. Additional strengths included investor alignment and domestic job creation.⁴

In the rankings, Cigna was preceded by Humana and followed by Anthem. Its JUST Strengths include worker treatment, environmental impact, and investor alignment. According to the company’s JUST Capital report, “The company shows good performance in serving the interests of employees, communities, suppliers, and the environment, as well as investors.” Its noted that Cigna focused intently on employee diversity and inclusion with over 1,400 clinical staff participating in Culture Diversity Forums in 2015 and 2016, and it has provided more than $5.6 million in funding through Educational Reimbursement Program.⁵

Terex, which was sandwiched in the rankings between first place Cummins and third place Deere, won the category for worker treatment as a result of its commitment to diversity and inclusion. While additional JUST Strengths include domestic job creation and product attributes, it is noted that the company was outperformed by peers in supply chain impact, citing the need to enhance management of the social impact of its supply chain.⁶

While we should be proud of these three corporations for their commitment to just behavior, I propose we should be calling on all Connecticut companies to commit to uphold a similar level of “justness.” A commitment to justness and Conscious Capitalism would no doubt benefit our employees, our customers, our companies, our communities, and the economic well being of our state.

If you want to learn more about the JUST 100 or Connecticut’s Conscious Capitalism Chapter, which seeks to engage, educate, and inspire leaders to practice Conscious Capitalism so they can make a positive impact on their business or organizations and its people, then please email me at info@consciouscapitalismct.org.

_____________________________________

Larry Bingaman is the president & CEO of the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority (RWA). Since 2009, he has been keenly focused on RWA’s sustainable and conscious business practices that maintain and grow the region’s rich natural resources to create new opportunities.  He is deeply involved in the New Haven community, serving as a founding board member of the Connecticut Chapter of Conscious Capitalism, chairman of the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, member of the Gateway President’s Advisory Council, and member of the Business Advisory Council at Southern Connecticut State University.

NOTES

1. Tudor Jones, P. (2015, April). Paul Tudor Jones: Why we need to rethink capitalism [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/paul_tudor_jones_ii_why_we_need_to_rethink_capitalism
2. JUST Capital, Retrieved from https://justcapital.com
3. Whittaker, M. (2016, November 30). The Just 100 Methodology: How The Rankings Work. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/martinwhittaker/2016/11/30/the-just-100-methodology-how-the-rankings-work/#572dfd4643ed
4. JUST Capital, Retrieved from https://dataexplorer.justcapital.com/pdfs/FDS.pdf
5. JUST Capital, Retrieved from https://dataexplorer.justcapital.com/pdfs/CI.pdf
6. JUST Capital, Retrieved from https://dataexplorer.justcapital.com/pdfs/TEX.pdf

Bridgeport, Stamford, New Haven, Hartford, New Britain Among Most Culturally Diverse Cities in USA

Five Connecticut cities are among the nation’s most culturally diverse, according to a new analysis.  Bridgeport is the 15^th most culturally diverse city in the U.S., according to the analysis by the financial website WalletHub, which also ranked Stamford at number 22.   New Haven, Hartford and New Britain were back-to-back-to-back, ranking  at number 30, 31 and 32 on the list of more than 500 cities across the country. Bridgeport’s cultural diversity score was 86.34, and the city ranked 28^th in ethno-racial diversity, 17^th in linguistic diversity and at number 150 in birthplace diversity.  Stamford’s cultural diversity score was 84.29, and the city ranked 63th in ethno-racial diversity, 20th in linguistic diversity and at number 103 in birthplace diversity.

New Haven’s scores and rankings were similar, with a 83.02 cultural diversity score, and ranking at number 76 in linguistic diversity and number 132 in birthplace diversity.  New Haven was the only Connecticut city to rank in the top 10 in any category, finishing ranked at number 10 in ethno-racial diversity.

When the analysis broke metropolitan areas down by size, among medium sized cities Bridgeport, Stamford, New Haven and Hartford all ranked in the top 15 most culturally diverse.  Waterbury ranked at number 19.  Among small cities, New Britain ranked 8^th, Danbury 10^th, Norwalk 15^th and West Hartford 76^th.  Large cities in the analysis were those with more than 300,000 people; midsize cities with 100,000 to 300,000 people, and small cities with fewer than 100,000 people.

The most culturally diverse city in the U.S. is Jersey City, New Jersey, with a score of 95.88.  New York City ranked sixth; Providence was at number 12.

“The country as a whole is becoming increasingly ethnically diverse, and living in an ethically diverse city today is good exposure to the opportunities and challenges all cities will be facing sooner or later,” said Mario Luis Small, Grafstein Family Professor of Sociology at Harvard University.  “Ethnic diversity in neighborhoods is associated with a strong preponderance of businesses and local organizations that generate economic activity and sustain community.  Children exposed to ethnic and language diversity early on, develop a broader and more sophisticated understanding of the diversity of the world.”

In determining the cultural diversity scores, the three categories were weighted, with racial and ethnic diversity making up 50 percent of the score, language diversity 33 percent and U.S. region of birth diversity consisting of 17 percent of the score.  The regions were in-state, Northeast, Midwest, South, West, U.S. territories, and foreign-born.

Survey Says: Hartford Is Among Nation’s Top Up-and-Coming Cities

What do Milwaukee, Syracuse and Hartford have in common? They are all – believe it or not – the nation’s most notable “up-can-coming place to live,” according to a new national analysis of the top places to live in the U.S.

In calculating the second-annual ranking of the Best Places to Live in the U.S., which evaluates the 100 most populous metro areas in the country based on qualities that Americans care about most, U.S. News looked at affordability, employment opportunities and the overall quality of life in each place.  Hartford’s ranking jumped from number 59 a year ago to number 31 this year, among the largest leaps of any city in the nation.

The leading reason cited by the publication is the increase in jobs.

"The Hartford region has seen some strong employment growth in a number of high-productivity sectors, including professional, technical services, education and health services," said Alissa DeJonge, vice president of research at the Connecticut Economic Resource Center.

The types of job opportunities that are available in the Hartford area tend to pay well, the publication points out, “with residents earning nearly $57,000 per year on average, which is significantly more than the average American's salary of $48,320 per year. United Technologies Corp. provides employment to residents in the manufacturing and engineering sectors, and the region is home to some of the country's largest financial institutions, including Aetna Inc. and the Hartford Financial Services Group.”

"Hartford is known as the 'insurance capital' of the U.S., a title substantiated with Connecticut ranking No. 1 in the U.S. for insurance employment per capita, with many of those employers located in the Hartford region," added Susan Winkler, executive director of Connecticut Insurance and Financial Services. "Connecticut is also home to the highest concentration of actuaries – many located in the Hartford region."

The U.S. News review also notes that the region features a diverse selection of restaurants and cultural attractions. Paul Pita, CEO and executive creative director of Hartford-based digital marketing firm The Pita Group, told U.S. News "Hartford is a great place to live because residents have access to what they need: great options for housing, great educational options and a wide variety of lifestyle options for food, arts, culture, entertainment and outdoor activities."

Syracuse moved from #53 to #28, and Milwaukee climbed from #72 to #47.  The top 10 places to live in the U.S., according to the rankings, are Austin, Denver, San Jose, Washington D.C., Fayetteville, Seattle, Raleigh/Durham, Boston, Des Moines, Salt Lake City and Colorado Springs.  Portland, Maine ranked #26 and Albany ranked #30, just ahead of Hartford.  New Haven ranked #81 in the top 100.

The metro areas included in the rankings were evaluated by U.S. News using data from sources including the United States Census Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Labor and U.S. News' own internal resources. This data was categorized into five indexes – Job Market (including salary and unemployment rates), Value Index (including cost of living), Quality of Life Index (including education, crime, commuting, and health care), Desirability Index, and Net Migration - and then evaluated using a methodology determined by Americans' preferences. The percent weighting for each index was determined by the answers to a public survey in which people from across the country voted for what they believed was the most important thing to consider when thinking about moving, according to U.S. News.

Red Cross, Local Fire Departments Team Up in 4 CT Cities for Free Smoke Alarms, Education

The American Red Cross in Connecticut is partnering with four communities across the state for the first-ever Red Cross Install-A-Thon, part of the Red Cross Home Fire Campaign to reduce the number of home fire deaths and injuries. During the week-long event, scheduled for four communities in Connecticut and one in Rhode Island in March, Red Cross workers will be joined by the members of the local Fire Department and community volunteers to visit homes throughout the city. They will share fire safety and preparedness information and install free smoke alarms in homes as requested. Among the program goals is to install 1,200 free smoke alarms in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Participating cities in the Install-A-Thon include Torrington on March 6: Norwalk on March 7; New Britain on March 8 and New London on March 10. Volunteers will help families understand the importance of fire safety and help them develop personalized family escape plans to use in case a fire breaks out in their home.  A similar effort took place in New Haven in January.

“Home fires are the biggest disaster threat faced in the U.S.,” said Mario Bruno, CEO, American Red Cross Connecticut and Rhode Island Region. “Our goal is to reach as many homes as we can with this program to help ensure people know what to do and are prepared in the event they experience a home fire. We know that for every 1,000 smoke alarms the Red Cross installs, one life is saved. Our goal is to save at least one life as a result of our Install-A-Thon.”

Sixty percent of house fire deaths occur in homes with no working smoke alarms, officials indicated. This campaign is in direct response to that threat. The Red Cross is committing to install 2.5 million free smoke alarms in neighborhoods at high risk for fires, and to educate those residents about fire prevention and preparedness.

As of August 2016, the Red Cross and partners have saved at least 100 lives as part of this campaign, according to officials. Since the program began, the Connecticut and Rhode Island Region of the Red Cross has installed more than 10,000 smoke alarms between the two states.

Individuals interested in having representatives visit their homes to have free smoke alarms  should make an appointment via the websites www.redcross.org/ct/schedule-a-visit or by calling 1-877-287-3327.

In addition to providing free smoke alarm installations and education, the Red Cross is looking for volunteers to help install the alarms, and to educate and provide safety information for this event and in their community throughout the year. Home Fire Campaign Volunteers are trained by the Red Cross, can volunteer during the day or on weekends and can help make a difference in their community. For more information on volunteering visit: https://volunteerconnection.redcross.org/?nd=vms_public_form&form_id=1078.

The Red Cross Install-A-Thon is made possible, in part, due to a grant from the William and Alice Mortensen Foundation. Since October 2014, the Red Cross has worked with fire departments and community groups across the country as part of a multi-year campaign to reduce the number of home fire deaths and injuries by 25 percent. Home fires remain the biggest disaster threat to individuals and families in the United States.

Red Cross officials point out that residents who reside outside the Install-A-Thon cities can always make an appointment for a free Red Cross fire safety visit and free smoke alarms at any time. The program is free and open to anyone in Connecticut.

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches life-saving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization, depending on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission.