Seattle, WA

The Seattle Division has selected Dawn Bennett to receive the Director's Community Leadership Award.

Dawn Bennett has been an advocate for children and teenagers for most of her career. Ms. Bennett currently serves as liaison for the Support, Prevention, and Intervention (SPI) portion of Family and Community Engagement to African-American Families. Ms. Bennett is the "go-between" for the school and district staff and the student and family so that relationships are enhanced and all are engaged to bring their best proposals to the table.

Ms. Bennett is dedicated to building a strong family-based approach that aids the student’s learning as well as the overall educational process. Her immense contributions and sheer determination for at-risk youth have made her an individual that stands out in the crowd.

Ms. Bennett's passion for African-American youth fosters in each student a motivation to become an advocate for their own education through providing an environment where there are role models and tutoring and mediation between students and teachers to ensure a successful high school graduation and possible college entrance.

Over the years, Ms. Bennett has spent endless hours providing liaison to the African-American youth and community to provide and connect with each student so that they can be an example and leader in their community. Ms. Bennett's energy is contagious and motivates others to be engaged and get involved to make youth a priority.

Ms. Bennett was part of the 2009 Citizens' Academy for the Seattle Division of the FBI. She also serves as an active participant in several other community outreach programs where she organizes and plans music, sporting, and cultural events for youth in the greater Seattle area.