Four Nonprofits That Received Playmaker Grants The 50 Fund board chose to award three types of grants: Playmakers, Game Changers and Re(a) d Zone. Since March 2015, the board has awarded one Playmaker grant per week; by the Super Bowl there will be 50 Playmaker organizations. Each one receives $10,000 and a professionally made video featuring a “Playmaker,” a member of the organization that has made a significant impact in the nonprofit’s mission. Board Chairman Kamba Tshionyi says the grants are meant to help nonprofits complete small projects, as well as shine a spotlight on each group’s efforts. Below are four Playmakers who are making a difference here on our home turf. ALearn Closing the learning gap and preparing more low-income children for college is the main focus of ALearn, cofounded in 2007 by Julie Cates and Kathryn Hansen. Since that time more than 8,000 underrepresented students in 15 school districts have been helped by the program. The duo designed programs aimed at improving college readiness based on insights given by superintendents, teachers and community leaders. Programs include its Math Acceleration Program (MAP) for middle school students and MAP+, which provides ongoing support to MAP students, as well as Catalyst, a math acceleration program geared toward high school students. It also developed Zoomz, a social network specifically for high school and college students who are the first in their families to go to college. More than 3,700 students have joined since it launched in 2009. According to ALearn leaders, nearly all of their students attend college, with most attending four-year universities. Not to mention, ALearn students also graduate college at twice the rate of other Santa Clara County students. Wishbone In March, 2015, Wishbone received the very first Playmaker grant, and its founder and executive director Beth Schmidt was named the fund’s first Playmaker. Wishbone combines crowd funding with corporate and foundation scholarships to finance summer programs for high school students. In the last three years the San Francisco-based nonprofit has helped nearly 600 students raise more than $1.2 million in funding. It gives students a way to fund programs they are passionate about and interested in but that are financially out of reach. To qualify, they must have a recommendation from a teacher, coach or mentor. More than half the students who take part in the program report improved academic success after attending a program of their choice and 100 percent say they plan to attend college. What’s more, their teachers report that students display noticeably increased levels of confidence. Wishbone used its grant to send 20 Bay Area low-income high school students to summer programs. TeenForce More than 500 youth between the ages of 14 and 24 have found jobs in the community thanks to TeenForce, a San Jose nonprofit founded in 2010. Teens work jobs at retail stores, offices, marketing firms, tutoring businesses and more. So far, TeenForce participants have collectively completed more than 209,000 hours worked by the teens, and $2.1 million in earned wages. In addition to finding jobs for teens, TeenForce provides work readiness, training and skill development. The social enterprise helps not only students, from ages 14–20, but also foster youth up to age 24. It works like a staffing agency, handling all the paperwork, paychecks and workers’ compensation insurance. The Playmaker grant money went toward TeenForce’s foster youth work readiness and job placement program, with an emphasis on STEM careers, according to founder and CEO John Hogan. This past summer 16 youth worked paid internships at companies like Xylinx and SanDisk. Hogan said foster youth often don’t have the networks to land such internships, making the grant money critical for students’ future successes. Boys and Girls Club of the Coastside Primarily serving children and teens in Half Moon Bay’s Moonridge, an affordable housing development that many migrant workers and low-income families call home, the Boys and Girls Club of the Coastside provides afterschool activities and summer programs focusing on character and leadership development, health and life skills, education, the arts and sports and fitness. They also run the Half Moon Bay Soccer Club, a competitive club with a mission to create good athletes, students and citizens. And apropos to its location, the organization sponsors the HMB Surf Club. Streetside Stories combines literacy building with arts skills while homework help after school, a teen center and summer camps round out its offerings—all with the goal of providing the underserved children in its community with much-needed tools. After receiving the 16th Playmaker grant, Coastside leaders decided to put the money toward expanding programs, and continuing to sponsor a safe place for kids in Moonridge to play. Beth Schmidt (center) connects with students to hear about their summer program experiences with Wishbone. COURTESY OF WISHBONE
South Bay Accent - Dec 2015/Jan 2016
To see the actual publication please follow the link above