Jubilee Park & Community Center’s Post

Last week, members of the MHIC team had the honor of signing the final beam before it was raised, marking a significant milestone in the expansion of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell. Our team toured the project, seeing firsthand how our $8 million in New Market Tax Credits will help transform this facility into an even more powerful resource for the community, helping the Club meet its key goal of ending generational poverty. This goal will be supported by expanding services through a new teen center, arts and education spaces, a community café, and a teaching kitchen, all designed to meet the growing needs of local youth and families. With these additions, the Club expects to increase its reach from 137 to 450 youth served annually, strengthening programs like teen workforce development, mental health services, and academic support. Parents will also gain access to essential resources, including financial literacy classes, high school diploma equivalency programs, and skill-building workshops. This project represents more than just physical growth; it’s about creating lasting impact, supporting 30 full-time jobs, 50 part-time jobs, and 60 opportunities for teens. We’re proud to be part of a development that is making strides toward a brighter future for Greater Lowell. #CommunityDevelopment #YouthEmpowerment #BuildingForTheFuture #ToppingOff #NewMarketTaxCredits #BoysAndGirlsClub #GreaterLowell #ImpactInvestment #JobCreation #YouthPrograms #CommunityImpact #FinancialLiteracy #EducationForAll #MHIC #Lowell #CDFI #NMTC

Since 2006, Community Partnership School has refined an early childhood/elementary program that empowers children with the tools to make good on their dreams. In the summer of 2023, we embarked on a process to clarify our strategy for ensuring mission fidelity and impact well into the future. Having completed this Strategic Plan, we are excited to share this summary that frames how we will allocate and augment our resources to realize our strategic goals moving forward. Many thanks to our Board of Trustees, Faculty and Staff, Parents and Guardians, and various partners and friends for their significant contributions to this work. This document summarizes our collective vision, and we're excited to realize the vision with you over the next few years and beyond. Below in the comments you will find a link to our website and plan report. #Growth #CPSPhilly #strategicplanning #strategicthinking #communityimpact #planningforthefuture #sustainability

Florida Atlantic University has been awarded a historic $21 million multi-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Promise Neighborhoods program—marking the largest grant in University history. This transformative initiative focuses on turning poverty-concentrated neighborhoods into thriving communities of opportunity. This record-breaking grant—the largest in Florida Atlantic University history—will fund South Florida’s “Broward Unlimited Potential Promise Neighborhood” (Broward UP), an innovative program first envisioned by Broward College. In partnership with the School Board of Broward County, the Children's Services Council of Broward County, and the Community Foundation of Broward, Broward UP aims to connect resources, talents, and creativity to address the needs of children from cradle to career. #HigherEd https://lnkd.in/e8sN3pc3

By Don Allen, Ed.S., M.A. Ed., MAT "Despite the best intentions, resources are sometimes directed toward initiatives that yield lackluster results or fail to address the root causes of crime. It's time for a paradigm shift – a reevaluation of how the Twin Cities invests in ‘community shirts’ to ensure that every dollar spent translates into tangible benefits for the plan of actually reducing crime - the band-aids are all used up. It’s time to turn to charter schools and after-school academic programs for parents and their children." https://lnkd.in/gPiyUnWA

This upcoming school year City Year Jacksonville ‘s theme is “It’s Possible.” And it just so happened to be the first day all 20 of us are wearing shirts that have the definition of “possible” on them. Little did we know we would be demonstrating exactly what that means this morning. At 730am I got a call from our team saying the AC in our entire building was out. Not only would that generally be a problem but it was a huge problem this morning considering we were expecting to host school leaders from all of our whole school, whole child partnership schools plus our staff (50 people!). This was set to begin at 830am! I immediately start calling people at 745am hoping we could pivot quickly and not have anyone suffer through 90degree office heat. Would you believe every person I called picked up? And within minutes I had 2 possible space options for 50 people! 🥹 Thank you Rachael Tutwiler Fortune, Haley Wright Tinkle, Mari Kuraishi, Melanie Patz. (Jacksonville Public Education Fund, Downtown Vision Inc., Jessie Ball duPont Fund, United Way of Northeast Florida ) ❤️ Not only that. When our staff found out we had to pivot, instead of complaining, they picked up the mantle of support and made the shift happen like it was nothing. While the community made space for us, our staff came together as one to make it happen. 💥 As I enter into the revision phase of MY FIRST MANUSCRIPT 📖(you read that right) where I’m writing about the power of community, I am reminded of that even more today. In a time where we are seemingly so divided, we should never forget that every day people and communities are coming together demonstrating something very different. They are showing what’s possible even in trying times. At the end of the day, finding space with AC can feel like a simple logistical thing but I believe it symbolizes something bigger if you look closer. What if in the same way we find division so easily, we also find the ways where we are united and supporting each other? What you seek is what you will find, right? I’ll leave you (and me) with this: How will you unleash the power of community? How have you witnessed it? Key questions I know I’ll keep asking myself. I hope you’ll join me. 💡 #community #jax #united #joyfulcollective #power

🎉 Big News! Episcopal Community Services (ECS) has been awarded a multi-year, $212,435 grant from the William Penn Foundation, to support our groundbreaking MindSet program. This funding will help us break the cycles of intergenerational poverty through holistic, data-driven economic mobility initiatives. By partnering with organizations like the West Philadelphia Skills Initiative (WPSI), we provide long-term coaching and support to job-training graduates, connecting them with employers such as the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Medicine, and SEPTA. Thank you, William Penn Foundation, for investing in innovative solutions that uplift our community! 💙 #EconomicMobility #CommunityImpact #ECSPhilly #WilliamPennFoundation #MindSetProgram

Investing in Connecticut Children’s Future: A Successful Literacy Roundtable! I’m thrilled to share that last week, Rep. Robin Comey and Rep. Dominique E. Johnson co-hosted a Literacy Roundtable focused on the importance of early literacy programs. Our very own Alexander Chu from Reach Out and Read, Northeast was one of many passionate literacy advocates who participated in the roundtable discussion. Connecticut made a significant commitment in the 2023 budget by allocating $1 million for statewide investments in evidence-based early literacy curricula and teaching practices. Research overwhelmingly shows this approach has a lasting impact: 📘 Improved school achievement 📘 Enhanced emotional and social well-being for children 📘 Reduced grade retentions 📘 Lower rates of juvenile delinquency Investing in early literacy programs is an investment in our children’s future. Let’s keep this momentum going! If you’d like to learn more about the discussion, you can watch the entire event on CT-N: https://lnkd.in/eNHCqFRi #Literacy #EarlyChildhoodEducation #Community #Connecticut #ReachOutandRead #RORNE

In communities across the country, the demand for early childhood education (ECE) exceeds the number of slots available for children, including in #Missouri. Kids Win Missouri is working to address this challenge through its Child Care & Early Education Community Planning Project, which is supporting the development of locally focused community plans designed to chart a path toward a child care and early education system that better meets each community’s needs. Learn more about the initiative and how IFF is contributing to the work in our recent story: https://lnkd.in/e9SdXCUB

As we wrap up another week, I’m reflecting on the incredible importance of education as a tool for equity, especially for students facing the challenges of homelessness. Addressing systemic barriers and creating access to opportunity isn’t just a job; it’s a mission that inspires action every day. I came across this insightful article https://lnkd.in/gjkuU-Zz that highlights how Homelessness among families significantly impacts students, leading to lower graduation rates and chronic absenteeism, but innovative programs like Stable Homes Stable Schools demonstrate the power of collaboration. By providing housing support, job training, and school stability, these partnerships improve educational outcomes and break the cycle of homelessness, highlighting the need for broader funding and replication nationwide. It’s a powerful reminder of how we can all contribute to meaningful change, whether through policy, collaboration, or direct support. As leaders, educators, and advocates, we have a collective responsibility to ensure that no student is left behind due to circumstances beyond their control. Let’s continue building pathways to success for all students, together. 💡 What’s inspiring your work this week? Share in the comments—I’d love to hear!

Welcome to School is a documentary produced in 2023 by the Maya Angelou Schools and See Forever Foundation in conjunction with Unchained Stories, a social impact production company. The film traces the 25-year legacy of the Washington, DC based Maya Angelou Schools’ storied history of grassroots organizing, resource activism, and creating a specialized safe space for carceral and alternative education students. Welcome to School is told through first-person narratives from current students, alumni, staff, faculty, and the organization’s founders. The intersection between poverty, public education, and the juvenile justice system from the 1990s to present day are examined alongside the retelling of the Maya Angelou Schools’ origins. The cycles of collective trauma, inappropriate reprimand of students, and the presence of police and police-adjacent agencies against the backdrop of undersourced ward neighborhoods all affect the educational environment. The Maya Angelou Schools began as the student-by-student counter to these institutional barriers. Throughout the decades, the Maya Angelou Schools’ founders, board, parents, faculty, and staff have questioned the bureaucracy of the traditional education system’s teaching and learning expectations against the reality of DC’s students. Welcome to School highlights the fact that Maya Angelou Schools grown from an initially experimental approach to educating students to a nationally recognized expert in serving opportunity and justice-involved youth. Their unique approach helped to solidify the Maya Schools as the premiere leader of alternative education and a school network providing second chances! https://lnkd.in/exZUDXjK #mayaangelouschools #seeforeverfoundation #Educationforall #Welcometoschool