Backpacks For the Future.
Verified Non-Profit
$1,570
$10,000 goal
The Description
The Harris Foundation, founded by Dr. Bernard Harris - the first African-American astronaut to walk in space, believes that the three pillars to success are having a strong education, good health and high financial IQ. To this end, we support programs to build these foundations for underserved and underrepresented students and communities. Two of these programs are Dare to Dream and the STEM Centers of Academic Excellence.
THF's Dare to Dream program serves nearly 300 students in the Houston by providing a free, interactive character education and college and career readiness curriculum to fourth through sixth graders. Through the use of positive role models, community involvement, and college and career exploration, students experience a year of interactive lessons that educate, inspire and motivate students to set goals and create a plan to achieve them.
The STEM Centers of Academic Excellence include a unique partnership with Houston Independent School District to provide a program for problem-based inquiry STEM learning to K-12 students in the after school setting. Though the program serves the K-12 pipeline, this campaign focuses on the 4th-6th grade population.
The culmination of both programs is a graduation ceremony held at the University of Houston. The ceremony celebrates the students' successess throughout the program and their commitment to excellence both in these programs and their future. We would like to show the students they won't be alone on the journey they have started. Over 15 million students in the United States start the school-year without the supplies they need to be successful. To help eliminate some of this problem, we would like to present each graduating student with a backpack containing a summer reading book and supplies that can be used for the 2015-2016 school year. Contingent upon funding, we would like to provide each student a backpack stuffed with a summer reading book, pencils, erasers, a ruler, and other necessities.
Thank you in advance for your support of Houston area students.
Back Up Plan
our first priority is to provide all students with a book to prevent summer learning loss.
About the Creator
Prior to joining the Harris Foundation in April of 2010, Kelly served as an Implementation Coordinator for the Center for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Education at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. In that role, she worked heavily with the local community, running outreach programs to support students, parents and teachers through the K-12 pipeline. In that role, she worked with the Mayor's StepUP Initiative in Boston, MA – a coalition of the ten lowest performing schools in the city partnered with five Boston area universities- aiming to eliminate the achievement gap and raise student achievement overall. One of her primary responsibilities at Northeastern University was to serve as the Camp Director for the ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp at Northeastern University, recruiting students and staff, developing curriculum and assisting with the day to day operations of the program.
Kelly holds a Masters in Teaching and Bachelors of Science degree from Northeastern University.
Investments (15)
Carole H. Allen
9 years ago
Jane Kovalevich
9 years ago
Sarah Ragoobarsingh
9 years ago
Deborah Mansfield
9 years ago
Kelly Sauve
9 years ago
Bernard Harris
9 years ago
C M Pielech
9 years ago
Jack M Gill
9 years ago
Pamela R. Jones
9 years ago
Anonymous
9 years ago
Christina Sauve
9 years ago
Susan K Sclafani
9 years ago
Farboud Ebrahimy
9 years ago
Keily Hayes
9 years ago
Barbara A. Anderson
9 years ago
Comments (1)
Carole Allen February 28, 2015
I want the donation name to be from Abigail and Spencer Stones, not me, with their picture but I did not see where I would attach it.
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