There’s a million bucks on the table. (At least, there will be in four years if Boulder County responds in full to our “Million Dollar Mission”)
If the community responds by donating $1 million to The Community Foundation’s Community Trust by year-end, and $4 million total by 2011, we will double our financial support to Boulder County nonprofits, now and forever. We will also reserve $1 million of that for “impact funding” to address one particular, persisting community need.
The Community Foundation has decided to commit that impact funding to tackling the achievement gap between Boulder County’s college-bound students and those on the verge of dropping out. All of our research on local community needs points us in that direction.
No doubt, it’s a huge issue. But with the community’s help – both financial and intellectual – we think we can move the needle.
There were some big brains in the room this week during our meeting with education experts to brainstorm what The Community Foundation might spend $1 million dollars on. And some big ideas emerged.
Options include pilot programs at elementary schools aimed at getting students from non-English speaking families up to speed on literacy. Another proposal would focus on public awareness of the various early childhood education programs already available to struggling young families.
The Community Foundation’s major assignments moving forward are to raise this $4 million, so that we have this money to give on behalf of the community we serve; and to not only hone in on a specific project to fund, but also to simultaneously raise awareness for all the great work already being done locally to address early childhood education.
Interested in learning more? Please check this blog for updates and email me, chris@commfound.org. If you have already donated to the Community Trust, thank you. Because of you and your neighbors, we have raised more than $700,000 since launching this initiative in September. That’s a serious accomplishment for our community, considering the markets crashed that same month. If you haven’t yet given, please consider doing so before year-end. Write your check to The Community Foundation and send it to us, at 1123 Spruce St., Boulder, CO 80302.
Thanks for your interest and involvement! Because of you, some exciting things are afoot.
Chris Barge
Director of Philanthropic Services
