Meet our Grantees
MPoweringKids
MPowering Kids is a nonprofit charitable organization that provides after-school tutoring, mentoring, cultural enrichment and community service programs for motivated students in under-served communities in Long Island, New York. The MPowering Kids staff and volunteers work closely with students from their fourth grade year through their high school graduation, offering nine years of programs and opportunities to acquire the skills, habits and attitudes necessary to succeed in college and in life. The HF is proud to have awarded MPowering Kids a lead gift in 2003, contributed to the development of MPowering Giving Circles and to have helped to cultivate their “MPathy” philanthropy program for kids. The HF has provided matching grants for funds the kids have raised on their own, and contributed to the nonprofits chosen by the kids.
One of the reasons this is a favorite grant recipient: when they made their first grant request, their operating budget was $200,000 and our percentage of that was 5%. Now, it's $875,000 and we're not even a blip on their financial radar. We love that - sustainability in action!
"In fiscal year 2003, our program budget was $200,600 and we were teaching fourth and fifth graders only. In 2008, we are teaching kids from fourth grade through 10th grade (those fourth graders are now in 10th grade!) and we are now teaching in three locations (elementary, middle, and high schools). Our current budget is $873,370. As of our 2007 audit, 97% of all funds raised went to program expenses!"
The Harnisch Family Foundation's initial grant had a large impact on MPowering Kids' ability to garner interest by other funders to support our after-school program. Since The HF’s first grant, MPowering Kids has received support from a wide variety of corporate, private and public foundations; including:
- Disney
- CA, Inc.
- Newsday - McCormick Tribune Foundation
- The Manhasset Foundation - Greentree Fund
- Citigroup
- Rosie's For All Kids Foundation
- Bank of America
- State Bank Of Long Island
- Target
- The Orr Family Foundation
- The Goodwin Family Foundation
Most importantly, our students continue to make huge gains in academic and personal achievements for every year that they are in the program. At the end of last year, each child in the program received at least one award from the school, and our students were the valedictorians of their class!
We have a lot to be excited about as we start this school year, and as always, we are so grateful Ruth Ann for helping to initiate the dream Susan Marshall had of using education as a pathway out of poverty for these promising children.
~Linda Ritchie, CEO and Executive Director.