Congratulations, VA Foundation for Community College Education (VFCCE) has been awarded a $25,000 Grant to continue their work to achieve their goal to have one college graduate in every VA home by 2025. The grant will be used to fund the “Rural VA Horseshoe Initiative”, to increase the quality of education in Rural VA and “Great Expectations Educational Program for Foster Youths. This Foundation is pleased to partner with VFCCE to help VA achieve the goal of a more educated populace.

The Malala Fund has been awarded a $25,000 grant to build infrastructure and increase the capacity of helping girls gain access to a secondary education through programs, communications, technology and sustainable operations.

FINCA International will receive a second grant for $25,000 to fund Stage 2 of their BrightLife Program.  Stage 2 funding will be used to develop and automate client screening and credit approval process. The hope is this innovation will overcome the cost and logistical barriers that limit the business model to FINCA’s existing borrowers.  The Stage @ solution is to design a self-sustaining solution/program/product that also generates a profit.

The Hilde Back Education Fund (HBEF) has been awarded $20,000 for scholarship funds to support 4 students in Kenya, 2 girls 2 boys, over a 4-year term.  The scholarship will cover school fees as well as provision for Psychosocial Support.  The mission of HBEF is “to assist bright children from poor families and disadvantaged communities access education by providing scholarships and other opportunities at the secondary level.”

Europe is facing its biggest crisis since WWII.  More than three years after the start of the Syrian war, the humanitarian plight of more than 6 million people displaced inside Syria and the 2.8 million refugees scattered in the region is growing more dismal by the day. It is currently considered the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. Many Organizations are trying desperately to help these people.  Five grants for $10,000.00 each have been awarded to the following organizations to help fund these efforts.

*International Rescue Committee

*UNICEF

*World Vision

*CARE

*Save The Children

Congratulations to AHALA Children’s Rights Foundation the US affiliate for CODENI.  This is the second and final payment for the request to support the Life Projects coordinator and a Psychologist/Operational coordinator.  The project benefits children and women interested in developing life projects through education and/or formal employment, with the goal of helping overcome their street dependencies in Guadalajara.

Congratulations West End Center of Roanoke VA.  They will receive a grant for $15,000 to be applied to the After School Program (ASP).  The ASP serves Pre-K to High School students.  The program provides enrollees tutoring assistance, reading classes, and STEM opportunities in additional to educational monitoring.

Congratulations to Women’s Global Empowerment Fund of Denver Co.  They have been awarded a $20,000 grant to continue their loan fund training program for Ugandan women.  The request will also allow them to expand o Haiti to begin a bakery project, to provide  sustainable jobs and assist the community.

Congratulations to Children’s Trust in Roanoke VA.  They have been awarded $15,000.00 for their Speak up Be Safe (SUBS)and Stewarts of Children (SOC) programs.  The goal is to educate 7,500 school children in the next 3 years.  and 1000 SOC facilitators.  They will also allocate funds to the Child Advocacy Centers, where they serve children that are victims of abuse and neglect.  The programs serve the Cities of Roanoke and Salem, the Counties of Roanoke, Botetourt and Craig.  This is the first year of a 3 year grant with funding for subsequent years contingent on them successfully raising funds from governments and the UW and individuals.

Congratulations to the Boys and Girls Club of Southwest Virginia. They have been awarded $10,000.00 to support their Project Learn program, which is an essential component of our overall programming at the BGCSWVA and is implemented five days a week at our 9th Street Club in southeast Roanoke. This ongoing program provides local youth with affordable after-school and summer programming that increases academic achievement and personal development so that youth stay in school, graduate high school on time, and go on to post-secondary education and rewarding careers.