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On four separate occasions this past summer, I hosted in Cincinnati friends of mine who either live in or around New York City.  Like all New Yorkers, they are unabashed in their belief that their home turf is the center of the universe. None of the four had ever been to Cincinnati before.  Our humble corner of the country, as far as they were concerned, is fly-over country.

That, however, was before they came to the Queen City.

After a long weekend here, all four of them - each a discriminating critic of what constitutes a desirable community - confessed to being wow-ed.

Our itinerary was as follows:

We made ample use of our beautiful parks system: Saturday morning sand volleyball at Sawyer point; a visit to the beautiful Bengals-built tree house in Mt. Airy Forest; and a stroll at sunset around Ault Park.

To balance out all that recreation, we indulged in Cincinnati's culinary musts: My guests were intrigued by Cincinnati chili; charmed by the grazing options and ambience at Findlay Market; and became fast addicted to Graeters ice cream.  (If there's a rule that says you can only have Graeter's once a day, several of my visitors insisted on breaking it!) 

We explored our city's art - both old and new -  at the Taft Museum and Contemporary Art Center.  We glimpsed the architecture of historic buildings like Music Hall, the Museum Center, and Withrow High School.  We cheered our (1st place!) Reds on to victory.  And we took in the views - from both Price Hill and Mt. Adams - of our mighty river, our rolling hills, and our proud downtown skyline.  

Their 72 hours in Cincinnati left my guests breathless and impressed.  And just think how many of our City's gems and hidden treasurers there wasn't time to show them.

I love showing off Cincinnati to visitors because it lets me see the City anew through their eyes, and inevitably leaves me feeling lucky that I call this place home.

Being positive about where we live is easy in good times.  I would argue it's just as important that we promote a civic swagger in hard times, too.   And there's no doubt that these are hard times.

The City soon faces another daunting budget deficit that will demand difficult cuts.  We have a long way to go to make people feel safe in every neighborhood.  The City needs to attract new businesses and fresh young talent to our community.  Our race relations must continue to improve. 

These challenges are real and they will not be addressed overnight.  But we also know that solutions and progress will come not by complaining, not by criticizing, not by cutting down the very community we wish to build up, but instead by first believing that Cincinnati's brightest days remain ahead of us.

The best way to do that is to remind ourselves that we have much about which we can and should continue to feel good.  Indeed, Cincinnati is blessed with assets that would make it the envy of most cities.

I have not yet mentioned our greatest asset of all: the people who are this city.  I had the good fortune during the time in my life that I was away from Cincinnati to live and work in some of the most exciting cities on earth: Bangkok, London, and yes, New York City.  I admit that I might be a bit biased, but my unscientific observation suggests that the people in Cincinnati are as proud of their home, as friendly with their neighbors, and as dedicated to the future of their city as any people on the planet.

So let's start being our own best promoters.  Because a city's flaws and strengths need not be mutually exclusive.  We can confront our problems and still project a swagger. 

I spend my days thinking about - and doing my best to act on - ways in which our schools can be used to help revitalize neighborhoods, and, in turn, neighborhoods can be tapped to help strengthen schools.

Naturally, I was thrilled with the recent announcement that Cincinnati Public Schools advanced to the "Effective" category on the Ohio Report Card - the highest mark for the district since the state began its current ranking system a decade ago.

This is good news for all of us, whether we have children enrolled in CPS or not.  We know - both intuitively and from research - that a stronger school system translates into greater economic development, lower crime rates, higher property values, and a heightened level of civic participation. 

A weak school system, on the other hand, flips all of those trends in the wrong direction.  Personally, I know that every time young married friends of mine tell me that they're moving outside the City so they can send their kids to quality public schools, I sense a lost opportunity.

The important thing now is to build on our current momentum.  The biggest kudos for the recent progress belongs to the principals, teachers, and students who worked so hard all school year to boost academic achievement.

But there's another group deserving of acknowledgement and appreciation.  That would be you: the community.  Without the vast network of community partners - from funders to program providers to individual volunteers – the recent gains could never have been realized.

In recent years, Cincinnati has created a nationally recognized model for schools as community learning centers dedicated to serving as extended-hour neighborhood hubs open to both students and non-student residents in the surrounding community.  These community learning centers provide additional academic support, health resources, after-school activities, recreational opportunities, and venues for neighborhood events.

One of those community learning centers is Oyler School in Lower Price Hill, which in the last several years has risen from "Academic Emergency" up to "Continuous Improvement."

"Our success simply would not have been possible without our partners," Craig Hockenberry, Oyler's principal who was honored earlier this year with the Cincinnatus Association's James N. Jacobs Outstanding Administrator award, told me.  "We've developed our school as the pillar of the community in Lower Price Hill, and both the school and the neighborhood are better off for it.  We've learned from our partners how to effectively align our resources and demand accountability.  The way forward is for every school to be a true community learning center."

Whether it's the United Way and Greater Cincinnati Foundation helping pay for the critical position of school resource coordinators, the Freestore Foodbank providing meals through its "Kids Café," or individual volunteers like Rita Hudepohl who has been tutoring and mentoring 3rd graders at Oyler school for the last 15 years, the clear takeaway is that only the whole community working together can help lift up the young people who are the future of our city.

So what can you do?

Every one of us has a talent and a small amount of time each week to share it.  In my case, I've been told my singing voice and my yoga poses are nothing anyone should be taught to emulate, so I'm sticking with what I know: This fall at CPS' Quebec Heights Elementary School, I'll be piloting a citizen journalism workshop that I'm calling "Neighborhood News Crews."  For an hour and a half each week, students, parents, and community members will spend a portion of each session reading and discussing current newspaper articles and then spend the rest of the time brainstorming, researching, and writing stories about their own neighborhoods.  The goal is to practice literacy skills while also boosting civic awareness so that publications like this one have readers and writers a generation from now.  I encourage others to share their passions with students eager to discover a passion of their own.

In his keynote address at the UC Economics Center award luncheon last spring, former Procter & Gamble CEO John Pepper said continued progress "will take the community - and by 'community,' I mean all of us - believing and acting on the conviction that the development of the children in our community is our highest priority."

For the more than 33,000 public school students in our city, their future is clearly a brighter one when all of us walk by their side.

After last week's good news, the community should give itself a well-deserved pat on the back.  And then it's time to refocus our efforts and to do even more.

Two years ago, I was on a delegation for Arts Advocacy Day in DC, where I sat down with three Republican congressman seeking support for $200 million for the NEA.It was great to receive a day of lobbying training arming up with facts like:

1. Artists create work immediately - we don't need 3+ years to design a road/bridge;
2. For every $1 spent on arts there is $7 in related spending.  Think about when you go to the Aronoff: dinner + tip+ valet+ program/souvenir+ buy a drink/dessert What would downtown be without it?
3. Artists' jobs cannot be exported and artists pay taxes too;
4. I am in the business of creating taxpayers vs. welfare cases or criminals who cost tax payers.

Then in the Capitol Offices I got to balance a huge red leather Congressman's office chair on my chin. He did a classic double take and we got the votes and the funding.

Over the past decade I have been creating Social Circus. Social Circus is "The growing movement toward the use of circus arts as mediums for social justice and social good. It uses alternative pedagogical tools to work with youth who are marginalized or at social or personal risk.  A characteristic of the social circus is its universality and accessibility. Each person, in accordance with their abilities, is able to realize their own potential through the wide gamut of activities that the circus offers: one can participate in juggling, trapeze, acrobatics, clowning, balancing acts, etc."

University Hospital physician Dr Victor Garcia invited me to the Cincinnati Appreciative Inquiry Workshop on Sept 11, 2010, to participate in a "conversation about how we might stem the violence in our communities and better integrate historically disenfranchised people back into the life of Cincinnati, and in doing so make life in Cincinnati a richer and more sustainable place."
 
I have developed and led successful non-profits but now I am about to embark on seeking to start-up a Low Profit Limited Liability Corporation to utilize the methods of Social Circus to help give opportunities and build resilience for poor people.  If you are interested in investing in this venture you can contact me at paul@circusmojo.com.

We all pre-judge people and situations.
 
Everyday I explain how the circus motivates change and growth.  When I introduce myself as a clown I hear,  "Oh I hate clowns," or "I am afraid of clowns."  I have a theory of why people have Coulrophobia- the fear of clowns; movies have been tough on clowns, but really clowns are the only thing that parents will allow their kids to be afraid of.  If you are scared of the doctor or dentist, Santa Claus - too bad, hold still, open up or tell him what you want." Clowns... "Oh-OK honey let's cross the street." It is this fostering of fear that builds Coulrophobia. 

When say I offer circus programs, people think I am shooting people out of cannons or that I am bringing elephants to the office or school. When I call the HR office to try to sell a circus corporate team building session, they say "WHAT? We have enough clowns here we don't really need a circus."  I enjoy the shift when people experience Circus Mojo and work through that prejudice.  I convince people the viability of circus skills is an opportunity to grow.

Ten years ago, I spent six months performing in Japan at a hot springs bath resort.  This experience offered me a very unique perspective… "Gaijin" which roughly translates to "hairy southern bastard" (Marco Polo had lots of hair and sailed in from the south) is a derogatory term for foreigner and this is what I was called nearly every day.  I was surrounded by elderly at a resort and all they remembered that the USA dropped two atomic bombs on them.  I would be jabbed with plates and chopsticks while in line for the buffet by guests. I think there are few places a white guy can experience overt racism, and while this is nothing close to the racism experienced by people in the USA it certainly has shaped my perspective. I loved Japan. I worked 12 minutes a day six days /week in a cabaret as a clown and had an amazing time. I could have stayed but my wife was ready to come home.

The circus encompasses sports, artistic expression and creativity. Circus demands cooperation, coordination, imagination and inspiration and the world of business and education certainly need avenues to deliver these concepts tangibly and we all need to work through our prejudices.

The circus is about resilience - about getting up, trying again and succeeding. 

I have certainly had my challenges in this business.  In November 2009 I purchased the old Ludlow Movie Theatre, my base to develop circus for "children of all ages." This center will host cabaret/circus performances, training space for professional circus artists, corporate team building, summer camps and be a catalyst for change in Ludlow. Bringing a business to Ludlow, KY where the growth industry was check cashing and tattoo parlors is a formidable venture.  I believe we must take risks and build upon achievements in order to create businesses and communities that work. 

My vocation is to help people rediscover what it's like to learn with their muscles and not their minds.  You only gain balance by falling or nearly falling then adjusting, getting up and trying again and again and again.  As we age we get frustrated easily and tend to stop doing what we are not good at...the circus dares us to achieve. Learning circus skills is tangible.  When a student; adult, teen, or toddler tries to spin a plate, walk on a large ball or do their first somersault there is a struggle and eventual achievement.  Self-esteem, confidence and fearlessness exude, and then there is the next skill to master. Circus Mojo strives to complete every corporate workshop, camp, school residency/after school program with a culminating performance for an audience of peers, friends, etc.  The recognition when a performer completes trick styles and smiles - TA- DA - the audience then applauds.

Mojo Medicine is a program I will offer at Cincinnati Children's Hospital twice a week for the next year that is funded by the Cooperative Society. Working with teenagers at the psych unit at Children's is remarkably like working with a group of executives…from my perspective, people are people and I am offering them a chance to succeed at new skills. Circus Mojo offers a variety that ensures everyone succeeds at something.  The Circus (sans animals) requires three elements:  Acrobats, Jugglers and Clowns, and after doing this for 14 years I can quickly assess who belongs in what group in every workshop. I challenge people to work on all three but highlight what they are best at.

It just amazes me how much I am like my Mom. 

There was a time in my life that I would have probably rolled my eyes at that comment only because I was too young to see the pure essence of her beauty both inside and out.  You really do not see how much you pick up from your parents until you're a bit more mature.  You just automatically learn different behaviors and traits from your parents.  So you should best believe that these are the folks that you probably learn financial management from as well.  And that means that they most likely did the same when they were young as well.

So what happens when you have a parent that just was not fortunate enough to have a parent or a person that they looked up to show them how to open a bank account, manage a check book, create a budget, save to purchase a home and so much more.  Here is where you have a break down.  But there is an opportunity to break this cycle by seeking financial education.

I know that sounds really easy, but that is where the challenge may be.  When you are so far removed from the process of knowing what your choices are, what you don't know is what is really keeping you trapped in a situation that you did not realize you could change.  Just think about all the folks out there that are still paying to get their paychecks cashed.  Yes, there may be small percentages that just do not trust financial institutions, but there are a significant number of these individuals and families that do not realize the risk they are taking let alone the money they are wasting. 

I just want everyone to know what their financial options are and if they still choose to pay for a service they could of received for free…. well, that is their choice.  But I really do believe that once folks understand the financial system and find a way to make it work for their situation, so many doors will open. 
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SMARTMONEY Community Services (SMCS) was founded in 1988 to work in partnership with the Cincinnati Central Credit Union, providing economic education and credit union services to residents of Over-the-Rhine and other economically distressed Cincinnati communities.  Since inception, SMCS has launched a number of innovative programs, including the first Individual Development Account program in the greater Cincinnati community, one of the most successful micro enterprise business training courses and is a HUD-Approved Counseling Agency offering pre and post purchase home ownership counseling and workshops. SMCS has had a longstanding reputation for providing quality affordable financial services and economic education to the Cincinnati region for over 20 years.

For more information regarding SMARTMONEY and/or the programs and services offered please visit their website at www.smart-money.org or contact them at (513) 241-7266.

Change is such an odd word.  Not many letters but can be taken in so many directions depending on who is leading it and/or who it is impacting.  But I would like to challenge us all to think about how we can change our behavior toward financial education.  I don't think I have ever met anyone that aspires to live paycheck-to-paycheck or struggle to make ends meet.  Ok, so what is an "end meet" anyway? And why is it that when we hear the words 'financial education' we automatically picture someone else needing these types of programs and services?

Do you realize that your earnings are not necessarily the key to financial success?  I am sure some of you would argue that point with me, but at every income level there are folks that achieve their financial goals or make progress and others who do not.  So how does one improve their chances of financial success?  First and foremost, be ready to adopt positive financial behaviors for your personal situation.  And in order to do that you need to understand what a good financial choice is for you and your family and what might not be a good choice.  

Ok, here comes that word again: change.  Yes, you might actually have to change your financial behavior.  The simplest way to ease into change is to simply be aware of what you are doing.  Actually think about maybe packing your lunch a couple of days a week, consider increasing the amount of money that gets direct deposited into your savings account (yes I am assuming we all have a savings account), take a "staycation" (enjoy some of the arts and events right here in Greater Cincinnati) or consider whether you really need to purchase another pair of jeans.  Ok, I might have gone a bit too far with the jeans statement but hopefully you get the point.

So now you are more aware of the financial choices you are making, I challenge you to become better informed.  Do you know how to read your credit report? Do you know how to create a household budget? Are you contributing to your 401K plans at work? Do you have a savings account (yes, you need a savings account)? Do you have a emergency fund?  But I would also ask that we all change our perceptions of who needs financial education.  You see there should be no shame in becoming educated, yes-financial education is just as important as anything else in our lives and should not be frowned upon.

So I congratulate all the individuals and families that have taken advantage of the programs and services that SmartMoney Community Services offer.  You have all taken one small step toward making a huge difference in the financial life you live in this fine city. 

Taking responsibility for your financial mistakes, Humbling. 
Sticking to a budget, Difficult.
Understanding your financial choices, "Priceless."

So really what is all this commotion about financial education?

Is it really that important that individuals and families understand the financial choices that they are making?  Do you really think that someone that has worked all week and finally gotten their paycheck should have to pay to get their check cashed?  Maybe there are some folks that do not understand what a credit report is and why they should even be concerned about their score anyway.  Why do we need to understand what mortgage we can really afford?

Today's complex financial services market offers us a vast array of products and services.  This degree of financial choices is good but also means that we should be equipped with the knowledge and skills to evaluate the options and figure out the ones that best met our needs. Most people experience their first lesson in financial management at home.  But many low-to-moderate income families are struggling to make it and not necessarily making good financial choices.  Financial education is critical to help individuals and families understand how to make better financial decisions. 

This is why SmartMoney Community Services is committed to working with individuals and families in Greater Cincinnati regardless of what they make.  You see financial literacy is an issue that affects not only the underserved, but also all families struggling through this economic crisis. The focus cannot solely be on how much money a person needs to make but just as importantly how do we all manage with what we have.

Some of you may know a gentleman by the name of Edward Finke.  He is the President of the Financial Network Group Ltd. and co-host of Simply Money, a TV news media show on FOX19.  He recently delivered the keynote address at SmartMoney's annual award luncheon and made the comment that most financially successful people are financially successful because they have chosen to live below their means.  Well, think about that for a minute.

At SmartMoney Community Services we provide programs and services that range from basic budgeting, first-time homebuyers education, small business development, individual one-on-one financial coaching, foreclosure counseling and much more. We are working to enhance the quality of life in Greater Cincinnati and our weapon of choice is financial education.  So join us and volunteer, make a donation, or better yet take advantage of the program and services that we offer.

Now let me get off my soapbox and get back to fundraising.  We still have a lot of work to do here in Greater Cincinnati and it certainly isn't cheap!