Higher Achievement Baltimore
The Higher Achievement model provides multi-year, out-of-school programming in the areas of academics enrichment, family engagement, and high school placement support for middle school students in fifth through eighth grades. Each child participating in the program receives around 400 hours of programming. Program outcomes from 2019-2020, yielded 69% of students increasing one letter grade in math or maintaining As and Bs through the second quarter. Through the support of the Abell Foundation grant, Higher Achievement is currently engaging in an expansion plan that seeks to double their footprint by expanding to two additional schools by the Fall of 2022.
Building STEPS, Inc.
Building STEPS partners with non-academic-criteria Baltimore City high schools and provides college going support including STEM seminars, summer internship experiences, college workshops, tutoring support, and college counseling. Students are identified by their school counselor and are admitted through an application process. Participating students must meet the 3.0 GPA threshold and have strong school attendance. This grant from the Abell Foundation will enable expansion into the tenth grade in order to provide an additional year of programming to improve foundational math skills, boost SAT scores/college math readiness, and expand college persistence programming.
Youth Baltimore Uprise, Fiscally Sponsored by Bmore Empowered Inc.
Youth Baltimore Uprise (YBU) is a nonprofit, mentoring organization operating in West Baltimore. The program is targeted at building leadership, social awareness, and social emotional skills for thirty middle school aged youth who live in the Sandtown/Winchester neighborhood. The mentorship component of Youth Baltimore Uprise entails regular connections between the six founding members and the thirty students they support. Student participants will regularly have guest speakers addressing a range of topics. Each month, students participate in a field trip, providing an opportunity for hands on learning outside of the community.
The Urban Alliance Foundation, Inc.
The Urban Alliance Foundation (UA) was founded in 1996 in Washington, D.C. with the goal of providing young people with meaningful work experiences and access to better jobs. The overarching goal of the Urban Alliance is to equip youth to successfully transition to the working world by providing paid internships, mentoring from an adult professional, case management, trainings focused on college and career skills, and post internship wrap around support. This current Abell Foundation grant will support their CTE program focused on providing internship placements in the area of construction. In partnership with employers, the Urban Alliance CTE program prepares high school seniors for careers in construction and related industries through sector-based internships, industry training, professional mentoring, and case management.
STEM Champions of Baltimore Inc.
Over the past seven years, STEM Champions of Maryland has developed as a staging ground to prepare 375 students in 32 middle and high schools throughout the city for competition in numerous STEM based events as a part of the National Science Olympiad competition, the largest broad-based STEM competition in Baltimore. STEM Champions of Maryland trains teacher coaches to provide robust curricula and materials for each of the 18 Science Olympiad activities. STEM Champions also brings over 200 STEM professionals and volunteers together to work with teachers in afterschool practices and to facilitate the annual Citywide Science Olympiad competition.