COVID-19: The Response from our Community of Grantees
Please join with us in supporting our community during the challenges of COVID-19. Each week, The CAFE will highlight the needs of our different Partners with hopes that you will support their amazing work now and in the future. And while financial support is most critical right now, our partners would welcome your help in many different ways…your expertise, your time, and your encouragement. Let’s all do WHAT WE CAN to show our support in the ways that are most manageable for each of us. Without you, this important work is not possible.
FEATURED GRANTEES
CK-12
About CK-12:
CK-12 is a deeply interactive and intelligent K-12 learning platform that’s free for everyone. We let students learn in their own way, whether by reading, watching videos, exploring interactive simulations, or answering personalized practice questions. We empower educators with fully customizable digital textbooks and smart insights about their students. We give parents peace of mind through lessons that are well-organized, standards-aligned, and easy to monitor. We’ve helped over 120 million people since 2012, both in-school and homeschool.
CK-12 has everything you need for remote learning during COVID-19:
- We’ve hand-picked the most popular math and science lessons at this time of year and made them easy for anyone to learn and share
- We have resources in multiple languages, including Spanish and Portuguese, and our lessons can be translated into any language directly on our platform
- We host live webinars every week to help you get the most out of our best resources
“In times of distance, learning brings us together. In times of uncertainty, knowledge helps us persevere.”
City Year Chicago
Founded in 1994, City Year Chicago currently partners with 31 Chicago Public Schools and deploys 254 AmeriCorps members across the north, west, and south sides of the city.
The mission of City Year Chicago is to advance educational equity and empower under-resourced communities by providing learning environments that maximize student potential, while developing and deploying the next generation of civic-minded change agents.
Diverse teams of 8-10 AmeriCorps Members (ACMs) serve full time in schools as student success coaches – tutors, mentors and role models who are uniquely positioned to connect with and support students to remain on track towards graduation. They are in the building before the first student arrives and until the last student leaves. AmeriCorps members partner with classroom teachers to help students build on their strengths and cultivate social, emotional and academic skills.
Immediate needs during COVID-19 :
One tangible impact of COVID-19 in Chicago has been the extended closure of schools. Our students have lost access to in-school resources, the consistency of the classroom, and the critical social-emotional supports and safe haven that schools provide for our most vulnerable children. City Year Chicago has felt the relevance of the call to action in serving students – now more than ever.
We believe City Year Chicago has a continued responsibility to support our district, schools, administrators, teachers, and most importantly, our students to help address the ripple effects of school closures. Therefore, we are currently working with all 31 partner school principals to best support their teachers and students as they shift to adopt remote learning plans for the remainder of the academic year. We at City Year Chicago are continuing to think of innovative ways to support 16,000 Chicago Public School students, including ways to secure the financial resources required to support the critical work our AmeriCorps members are doing.
Please consider making a gift to City Year Chicago in support of the service we provide to students throughout our City. Your gift will play a pivotal role in ensuring that every student we work with has the additional support they need to reach their limitless potential.
“While we have been faced with seemingly unsurmountable challenges and obstacles, our entire city has risen to the challenge to ensure our students are a priority and I am inspired by the tireless work of our educators and school district partners. My hope is that as we come out of this crisis as a human race, we will do so with greater understanding, empathy, and a shared sense of urgency for addressing the inequities in our most under-resourced communities.”- Myetie Hamilton, Executive Director, City Year Chicago
Charter School Growth Fund
The Charter School Growth Fund (CSGF) is a national nonprofit that identifies the nation’s best public charter schools, funds their growth, and helps to increase their impact.
Through CSGFs Seed investment strategy, we help expand the impact of high-performing charter schools that are early in their growth journeys and provide targeted supports to address common challenges organizations face as they grow.
As an organization, we have an unwavering commitment to supporting leaders of color, and our Seed strategy encompasses a dedicated fund created to ensure leaders of color have equitable access to capital and supports. The schools in our portfolio predominantly serve students of color, and we believe deeply in supporting leaders who reflect the backgrounds of their students and families.
Over the last few weeks, our team has:
- Issued unrestricted grants to help networks in our portfolio meet their communities’ needs however they see fit. Many networks have used the funds to accelerate their transition to remote learning. A large number are providing students and families with food, emergency funds, and counseling services. Others are doing a combination of these to help their school communities in creative ways.
- Built and nurtured virtual communities so that leaders can leverage the collective wisdom and experience of the charter sector to address near- and long-term challenges.
- Curated, updated, and shared “best of” approaches on various topics, which are now accessible on theCOVID-19 Resources page on the CSGF website.
The urgency and ingenuity with which charter school communities are approaching some of the biggest challenges that our nation and its schools have ever faced is truly inspiring. Charter networks are building on their values and commitment to student success to tackle challenges with an unmatched spirit of teamwork. Even during a global pandemic, they are nimble, resilient, and seeking to deliver on the promises they have made to students and families. As an organization, we are honored to support leaders as they navigate uncharted territory and provide as much support as we can for the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead. Darryl Cobb, Partner, Charter School Growth Fund
Purdue Minority Engineering Program
Established in 1974, Purdue Minority Engineering Programs have been nationally recognized and replicated to advance engineering learning, discovery, and engagement in fulfillment of the Land Grant promise through outreach, recruitment, and retention of historically underrepresented students in their pursuit to become extraordinary Purdue engineers. Although our programs are open to all students without regard to race, ethnicity, or gender, underrepresented students at Purdue University include African Americans, Latino/Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders.
In response to the impacts of Covid-19, MEP has taken the following steps:
- MEP is operating on a ZOOM video platform
- MEP LIVE: “We are Family” Series featuring students, parents, faculty, alumni. Copies of each session is posted on social media and on the MEP website
- MEP is revisiting the establishment of an MEP Advisory Board to be launched by fall 2020
- Eugene Jones, Retired NROTC Commander at Purdue University is acting as board chair and is developing a viable board framework
- MEP Scholarship Program (new launch 2020)
- MEP has invested $100,000 of unrestricted funds towards an Annual Scholarship Program to meet the challenges of college affordability. We will be launching a campaign for unrestricted gifts to MEP to continue this practice annually as part of the MEP Advisory Board’s goals. Part of the strategy for fund raising will focus on perpetual monthly giving at different giving levels comfortable for alums and donors. Current goal is to attract 500 alums that will give a minimum monthly gift of $50.00 perpetually. Many will be able to do more, but with a perpetual commitment, MEP will be able to run without dependence on corporate support.
- COVID Adaptation/Concerns
- Concerned about being able to employ current student staff confirmed through end of the fiscal year (June 30, 2020)
- Current employees have a job commitment through the end of the fiscal year.
- Freeze on all open positions. Current unfilled positions may be discontinued.
- Student employees (work to afford college)
- $50K to $80K per year for student mentors, tutors, student MEP staff – Because of the commitment to scholarships, student work is threatened.
- Virtual one-week summer camps and five week Academic Boot Camp WILL BE OFFERED SUMMER 2020!
- Offered at cost – We post the actual cost and provide scholarships to participants with need
- Focus areas: Math proficiency
- Hand’s-on project taught through a virtual video platform
- Mentoring and meeting staff, students, faculty and administrators
- Offered at cost – We post the actual cost and provide scholarships to participants with need
- NEW! Algebra by 7th Grade Program year -long engagement (serving grades 2-7)
- Partnership with Lafayette School Corporation with focus on students of color –mentors NEEDED that can volunteer virtually
There is work to be done to change the trajectory of our children. No ONE can do it alone, but each ONE, working towards a common goal, can change the world! I am grateful to do this work with YOU. Virginia Booth Womack, Director, Purdue Minority Engineering Programs
OneGoal
OneGoal-Chicago is an innovative organization that works to close the college degree divide and create a more equitable future. OneGoal starts as a credit bearing class in students’ junior year of high school and continues during the critical transitional period through their first year of college or other post-secondary path. The organization partners with schools in low-income communities, equipping teachers with the training, tools, technology and partnerships ensure their Fellows (students) realize their postsecondary dreams. Today in Chicago, OneGoal is serving close to 6,000 students in over 60% of open enrollment Chicago high schools .
Needs as a result of COVID-19
- Partnership Opportunities: OneGoal has always valued innovation and partnering with peer organizations, and these connections are even more valuable in our current crisis. Please reach out if you know an organization that could provide additional support to our teachers and students, or if you or your connections could help us continue to innovate and pivot our program.
- Financial Support: Due to COVID-19, all of our fundraising events and meetings have been reimagined or postponed for the foreseeable future. Midway through the year, we were on track to meet our fundraising goal. Now, we face an increasing fundraising gap and we anticipate the pandemic will have a far-reaching financial impact on our country. We will navigate these challenges and pivot our strategies to best support Fellows, but we will need support from our friends and champions to help us weather the storm. We hope you’ll consider making a financial contribution to support our teachers and students through this crisis and beyond.
Quote:
“The need will never be greater for an organization like ours, one that takes students who so often slip through the cracks, and helps them build a foundation for themselves and for the generations to come. Within just a couple of weeks, our community has gone above and beyond to show up for our students, and as a result, we will emerge stronger than ever.” -Sarah Berghorst, Executuve Director, One Goal Chicago
Purdue Minority Engineering Program
Established in 1974, Purdue Minority Engineering Programs have been nationally recognized and replicated to advance engineering learning, discovery, and engagement in fulfillment of the Land Grant promise through outreach, recruitment, and retention of historically underrepresented students in their pursuit to become extraordinary Purdue engineers. Although our programs are open to all students without regard to race, ethnicity, or gender, underrepresented students at Purdue University include African Americans, Latino/Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders.
In response to the impacts of Covid-19, MEP has taken the following steps:
- MEP is operating on a ZOOM video platform
- MEP LIVE: “We are Family” Series featuring students, parents, faculty, alumni. Copies of each session is posted on social media and on the MEP website
- MEP is revisiting the establishment of an MEP Advisory Board to be launched by fall 2020
- Eugene Jones, Retired NROTC Commander at Purdue University is acting as board chair and is developing a viable board framework
- MEP Scholarship Program (new launch 2020)
- MEP has invested $100,000 of unrestricted funds towards an Annual Scholarship Program to meet the challenges of college affordability. We will be launching a campaign for unrestricted gifts to MEP to continue this practice annually as part of the MEP Advisory Board’s goals. Part of the strategy for fund raising will focus on perpetual monthly giving at different giving levels comfortable for alums and donors. Current goal is to attract 500 alums that will give a minimum monthly gift of $50.00 perpetually. Many will be able to do more, but with a perpetual commitment, MEP will be able to run without dependence on corporate support.
- COVID Adaptation/Concerns
- Concerned about being able to employ current student staff confirmed through end of the fiscal year (June 30, 2020)
- Current employees have a job commitment through the end of the fiscal year.
- Freeze on all open positions. Current unfilled positions may be discontinued.
- Student employees (work to afford college)
- $50K to $80K per year for student mentors, tutors, student MEP staff – Because of the commitment to scholarships, student work is threatened.
- Virtual one-week summer camps and five week Academic Boot Camp WILL BE OFFERED SUMMER 2020!
- Offered at cost – We post the actual cost and provide scholarships to participants with need
- Focus areas: Math proficiency
- Hand’s-on project taught through a virtual video platform
- Mentoring and meeting staff, students, faculty and administrators
- Offered at cost – We post the actual cost and provide scholarships to participants with need
- NEW! Algebra by 7th Grade Program year -long engagement (serving grades 2-7)
- Partnership with Lafayette School Corporation with focus on students of color –mentors NEEDED that can volunteer virtually
There is work to be done to change the trajectory of our children. No ONE can do it alone, but each ONE, working towards a common goal, can change the world! I am grateful to do this work with YOU. Virginia Booth Womack, Director, Purdue Minority Engineering Programs
Bottom Line
Bottom Line partners with students from underserved communities to help them get into and through college and successfully launch a career. Bottom Line believes that a college degree is one of the most powerful engines for increasing one’s long-term economic and social mobility and for ensuring a choice-filled life. Likewise, Bottom Line was founded on the belief that a student’s motivation and ambition should be the key factor that determines their long-term success, not their zip code or family’s income.
Now more than ever, student engagement through relationship-based advising remains our top priority. As students are navigating new expectations around remote instruction and social distancing, Bottom Line is committed to connecting them to the resources they need to persist through school and graduate prepared to successfully launch their careers. Anticipating the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on the economy and job market, Bottom Line is actively building out additional resources for students to help them navigate virtual interviews and networking in this time.
Below are three specific ways you can support Bottom Line students:
- Financial support to ensure we can continue to provide one-on-one advising & support to our students. If you are able, please make a gift today to support the nearly 1,600 students we serve.
- Internship opportunities for our college students. Please contact Monica Cohen at MCohen@bottomline.org if your know of internship opportunities at your company or are interested in providing remote interview practice to our students.
- Connections to companies who could hire our students. If you are aware of any companies hiring for entry level, full time roles in Boston, Chicago and/or New York, please add these opportunities to our working list HERE. Please note this is an open document to all of our students across the organization, so students from Boston, Chicago, New York, or Worcester may reach out to you directly for support.
“During these difficult and uncertain times, I am even more inspired by our students’ persistence to become the first person in their families to cross the finish line and graduate from college. They are living signs of hope for a brighter future for Chicago.”- Chris Broughton, Executive Director, Bottom Line
Surge Institute
The Surge Institute was founded in 2014 with a bold and unapologetic mission – to educate and develop leaders of color who create transformative change in urban education. We believe that sustainable positive impact for youth and communities must include leaders who have shared experiences with those communities. Our ultimate goal is to dramatically improve outcomes and access for students through representative leadership. The Surge Fellowship is the signature program of the Surge Institute. It is a one-year cohort-based experience that unites 20-25 leaders of color in education, and provides tools and experiences for them to tap into their existing, innate power and accelerate their leadership and impact. Surge Fellows go on a journey, not just learning the hard skills needed to function at the executive level, navigate complex systems, and effectively change the status quo, they also join a vast network of authentic, critically thinking, and equity driven leaders of color who understand and support each other’s needs.
During this time, we know the care and education of our youth remains critical, and leadership matters more than ever. As we’ve all seen, this pandemic is having a devastating and heartbreaking impact on communities of color, and we need leaders of color who are leading for racial equity in our schools, organizations and communities to be well and to effectively navigate change during these challenging times. At Surge, we are resolute on the importance of continuing our work, and we have transitioned our sacred leadership space to a virtual setting, while recognizing that our work cannot be business as usual, virtually. We have taken a step back to assess the needs of our community, and are shifting our curriculum and experiences to meet those needs.
We are also supporting our fellows on the front lines through the launch of our Surge Relief Fund, a fund that provides tangible support, such as food, shelter, and technology, to Surge community members directly serving youth and communities that have been impacted by the pandemic. We encourage and welcome your contributions to the Surge Relief Fund. We also encourage your contributions to sustain our core work to support the growth and development of leaders of color through the Chicago Surge Fellowship.
Quote about your hopefulness for the future of our communities.
“This is an incredibly challenging and heartbreaking time in the world and in our country. Vulnerable communities, including communities of color, are experiencing significant loss of life and security during this time. It is important for me to acknowledge this suffering, while also holding other powerful truths about our communities. Our communities are incredibly resilient and ingenious, and are organizing to respond to those in greatest need. The response and commitment of our communities to take care of each other in times of greatest need is where my greatest hope lies.”
The Partnership for College Completion
ABOUT THE PARTNERSHIP
The Partnership for College Completion is a regional nonprofit organization focused on increasing college completion rates in and around Chicago, particularly for low-income, first generation and other underrepresented college students.
We do this by:
- Working with colleges and universities across northeastern Illinois to expand and scale practices proven to increase graduation rates,
- Advocating at the local, state, and federal level for legislative and administrative policy efforts that propel institutional reforms prioritizing student success, and
- Using our research and reporting capabilities to elevate public discourse about the state’s stagnating graduation rates and the urgency with which they need to be addressed.
QUOTE
“During these uncertain times in which our colleges and universities work to educate, assure, and support students who themselves are navigating the ambiguity created by the coronavirus pandemic, I have to remain optimistic about what comes next and the opportunities that the current crisis presents to implement more student centric approaches to ensuring that our most vulnerable students have access to and support through higher education.”
NEEDS IN LIGHT OF COVID-19
- Increased financial support from current and prospective donors.
- Exemplars from other convening organizations of how to adapt in a distant world.
- Discounted services from existing professional service vendors (i.e. accounting, legal, audit).
SYNCERE
About Project SYNCERE
Project SYNCERE (Supporting Youth’s Needs with Core Engineering Research Experiments) is a Chicago-based non-profit whose mission is to prepare the minds and create pathways for underrepresented and disadvantaged students to pursue careers in the STEM fields. First launched in 2009, our year-round engineering inspired programs ensure youth from underserved communities have access to opportunities that inspire and prepare them for future careers in STEM. Through our innovative project-based learning curriculum, Project SYNCERE inspires more than 3,500 students annually in the STEM fields, providing them with the resources and opportunities necessary to thrive in the STEM fields.
Immediate Needs
- Funding to help w/ the transfer of STEM programming to a virtual learning environment. Funding will help cover the cost of the following:
- Learning Management System Integration
- Project materials that will be sent to students’ home
- Training of instructors to deliver virtual curriculum
- Development of new virtual curriculum
- Funding to help cover the loss of income for general operating expenses (payroll, rent, utilities, etc…)
- STEM professionals to participate in virtual interview recordings to help us create a series of videos to expose students to various engineering fields
- Assistance w/ promotions/marketing to ensure students/families are aware of the programming opportunities that are available to them
Quote about Hopefulness
Our light continues to shine bright despite all the uncertainty in the world today. The resilient spirits of our communities and neighbors proves that no matter how bad things get, we will rise through it all.
Braven
Braven supports underrepresented students from college to career by partnering directly with universities and employers to offer a two-part experience that begins with a credit-bearing course followed by a post-course experience that lasts through graduation. Fellows emerge from Braven with the skills, experiences and networks they need to land a strong first job and get on a path to economic freedom.
Braven has worked with more than 2,000 students since 2014 and will graduate 600 in 2020. Their graduates significantly outpace national job attainment averages — 71% of their college graduates attained a strong job within 6 months of graduation compared to 49% of Black and Latinx students at public universities and 56% of all students. In addition, 95% are persisting in or have graduated from college.
- Now more than ever, promising young people from humble beginnings need our support. While physical distancing orders are in effect, we can still connect socially online to help them build their networks. A strong network can ensure students are well positioned to come out of this with careers that put them on the path to the American Dream, and volunteers are key for this effort.
- We hope you’ll consider getting involved with Braven; you can view opportunities and sign up here.
- We’re working to empower thousands more students at this time, including graduating seniors from low-income backgrounds as they navigate this economic crisis. Help us grow our impact to build the career skills, networks, experiences, and confidence for more students from humble beginnings at www.bebraven.org/donate.
“It is the challenging times, not the good ones, that define who we are. It’s up to us as a society to come together to get through this together and help our most vulnerable citizens. My personal hope is that this crisis leads us to become the next ‘greatest generation.’ ” – Aimee Eubanks Davis, Founder and CEO
Kids First Chicago
Kids First Chicago (K1C) is an education non-profit that works to ensure that every family and child in Chicago has access to a high-quality education. Our work focuses on activating parents to identify, navigate to, and advocate for quality public schools for their kids. Then, we work directly with district leadership, using parent input to shape education policy to better support families.
Over the last few weeks, our team has spoken with more than 200 parents and community members to ask what they need during this crisis. To ensure that these families’ voices are being heard, we have doubled down on three key strategies:
- Continually connect one-on-one with the families we serve, linking them to resources as needed.
- Raise the profile on the urgent and emergent needs that they share with us, ensuring the district and city/state leadership are responding to their concerns and centering their perspectives.
- Share our learnings with our philanthropic, nonprofit, education, and community partners so that we all can work together to find creative solutions during this extraordinary time.
Chicago’s communities and families have repeatedly shown their resilience and power in the face of crisis and disinvestment. Their stories are humbling and inspiring during a time that is uncertain and scary for all of us. We know that we can overcome this crisis – together. – Daniel Anello, CEO, Kids First Chicago
Additional Resources
- Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund
- What Nonprofits Should Know About the $2.2 Trillion Federal Covid-19 Aid
- A Better Chicago: Emergency Relief Grants
- My Forefront: COVID Resources and Responses
- Microsoft Teams: Free for Non-Profits
- Evanston Community Rapid Response Fund
- Visualizing the History of Pandemics