Four New York City organizations were the recipients of grants funded by $2 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with matching funds from Deutsche Bank Foundation.
The College Ready Communities Initiative provides resources that support community organizations that can reach more young people and families.
The Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Deutsche Bank in the USA. The funds are being provided for an effort over the next two years, as part of the foundation’s new College Ready Communities Initiative. The aim of the program is to connect community revitalization to education reform in low-income New York City neighborhoods.
Funding will help to create collaborative projects between community based organizations that aim to improve middle and high school educational outcomes and also support college readiness initiatives.
Gary Hattem, President of the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation, announced the grant recipients. Mr Hattem said, “There is too much talent going to waste in our neighborhoods. The same entrepreneurial spirit of local residents and organizations that led to the revitalization of so many of our communities now needs to be put to work to build a culture of academic success. College Ready Communities harnesses these unique capabilities in places where this shared intent will be given a chance to prove itself.”
The four organizations receiving the awards were announced at a Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation event hosted by the at the Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change, a school launched by the Abyssinian Development Corporation.
“Fostering a ‘college going culture’ is not something that ends at the schoolhouse door. College Ready Communities Initiative gives community organizations resources to help us work together more effectively to reach more young people and families. This is critical in times when the need persists and every dollar needs to stretch even further.” – Rev. Dr. Calvin O. Butts, III, Pastor of the Abyssinian Baptist Church and Chairman and founder of the Abyssinian Development Corporation.
The grant awards went to these four organizations:
- Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation/Make the Road New York/Urban Youth Collaborative
- Abyssinian Development Corporation/The Brotherhood Sister Sol/Coalition for Educational Justice
- Internationals Network for Public Schools /The South Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation/Make the Road New York
- Asian Americans For Equality/Coalition for Asian-American Children and Families
Note: The Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation carry out their corporate citizenship commitments and is based in New York City, where the majority of grants are awarded. Grant recipients are nonprofit organizations that focus on community development, education, and the arts.
