Growing Inland Achievement

Category: Grants

  • College Futures Foundation Provides $687,000 to Support Regional Guided Pathways Work in the Inland Empire

    College Futures Foundation Provides $687,000 to Support Regional Guided Pathways Work in the Inland Empire

    College Futures Foundation awarded $687,000 in funding to support seven community colleges in the region to implement Guided Pathways initiatives from October 15, 2020, to June 30, 2022.

    Guided Pathways provide students with clear course-taking patterns to encourage better enrollment decisions and a clearer path to graduation. “For Guided Pathways to work, colleges must implement an integrated, institution-wide approach to support students from the point of entry to attainment of high-quality postsecondary degrees and careers,” said Dr. Carlos Ayala, President and CEO of GIA. “This generous grant from College Futures Foundation will ensure professional development and support for Guided Pathways is available to all of our community colleges here in the Inland Empire.”

    Five of the Inland Empire’s twelve community colleges have already been selected to participate in the statewide California Guided Pathways project. These colleges include; Chaffey College, Moreno Valley College, Norco College, Riverside City College, and Victor Valley College. Grant funding from College Futures Foundation supports the remaining seven colleges with coaching and guidance similar to what is being offered in the statewide program. These colleges include; Barstow College, College of the Desert, Copper Mountain College, Crafton Hills College, Mt. San Jacinto College, Palo Verde College, and San Bernardino Valley College.

    GIA in partnership with Guided Pathways Regional Coordinators Angelica Ibarra and Leslie Valmonte, and national experts will provide customized direct support for individual campuses as well as professional development training and guidance on implementing Guided Pathways across all colleges in the region. Additionally, funding will allow GIA to host a regional Guided Pathways Virtual Summit, taking place on April 28-29, 2021. “This grant provides the necessary funds for the colleges to engage with the National Center for Inquiry & Improvement across several categories of support, said Ann Marie Sakrekoff, Chief Operating Officer of GIA. “These categories include two-day convenings for all 12 regional colleges, one-day workshops on key guided pathways issues, sub-regional sessions for groups of colleges facing similar challenges, and individual college site visits that are designed to support their institutional implementation.”

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  • Growing Inland Achievement Announces 2020 Innovation Awards

    Growing Inland Achievement Announces 2020 Innovation Awards

    Growing Inland Achievement (GIA) is pleased to announce our 2020 Innovation Award recipients. Innovation Awards are two-year $150,000 awards provided to organizations with plans to support and facilitate student success in the bi-county region of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties.

    This year, four organizations have been selected, including:

    Barstow Community College

    • Funding will support the development of an instrument to measure student “creative confidence,” as well as an outreach campaign based on “college is for all” messaging. It will also help 8th-grade students attend creative learning activities to improve awareness about workplace skills and knowledge.

    California State University, San Bernardino – Inland Empire Fellowship Program

    • Funding will be used to recruit and train 22 academic fellows per academic year from the CSUSB Undocumented Student Success Center, Office of Pre-College Programs, and 2020 alumni. Fellows will receive professional development, while working on completion campaigns, mentoring, and advising students toward achieving college degrees.

    Promise Scholars Ontario-Montclair Schools Foundation

    • Funding will be used to implement the “College is 4 You” project that focuses on reaching African American males and other underserved groups to close the equity gap in education. Campaign messaging of “College is 4 You” will be promoted through a regional marketing campaign. High school students will serve as brand ambassadors who will help with social media marketing while Promise Scholars College Advisors will support and guide brand ambassadors. Activities include workshops, values affirmations exercises, video messages, social media posts, and texting campaigns.

    Riverside County Office of Education – Magnify the Middle

    • Funding will help to increase middle school awareness of college eligibility and providing a systematic prep system leading to 9th-grade A-G on-track schedule. Activities will include a monthly meeting to share ideas at sites, middle school transcript analysis (HS readiness indicator), site-based parent engagement programs, and a “College Making it Happen” themed event for middle school students.

    “We’re very excited about the 2020 Innovation Award recipients because these four organizations have an exceptional track record of facilitating college and career success for students in the Inland Empire,” said Dr. Ayala, President at CEO at GIA. “They also place equity at the forefront of their programs to ensure student success.”

    Innovation Award funding provides $150,000 over two years while encouraging the contribution of local resources through a 50% matching requirement to promote sustainability and organizational capacity. This year’s awards were solicited by GIA’s regional Action Network Teams to ensure that the work is aligned with GIA’s goals. All awardees are required to have partnerships to implement the activities as well as a scalability plan to share the successes with the region. GIA has distributed nearly 2-million dollars in Innovation Award funding since 2017. To see a list of past awardees, please visit GIA’s website at inlandempiregia.org.

    Growing Inland Achievement is a bi-county, educational collaborative in the Inland Empire that brings together leaders across K-20 education, civic, and business sectors. GIA organizes and collaborates with the Inland Empire educational network to create innovative practices that achieve large-scale social and institutional change.

  • Emergency Grants Announced by Growing Inland Achievement

    Emergency Grants Announced by Growing Inland Achievement

    In a coordinated regional response to Inland Empire student needs, Growing Inland Achievement (GIA) has distributed 14 grants to local programs and nonprofit organizations, totaling $255,000. The funds will be used to support students in the Inland Empire with technology, basic needs, and college transition.

    With support from the emergency funding, these organizations can continue to provide services to students in the community affected by the pandemic. “We want to thank all of those who applied and congratulate the award recipients who are empowering students to reach their educational goals during these challenging times,” said Growing Inland Achievement CEO Carlos Ayala.

    Grant recipients include:

    • BLU Educational Foundation – $30,000
    • OneFuture Coachella Valley – $30,000
    • California State University, San Bernardino Office of Pre-College Programs / San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools / San Bernardino Community College District – $30,000
    • Riverside County Office of Education – $25,000
    • Ontario-Montclair Promise Scholars – $25,000
    • Great Harvest Community Center – $25,000
    • University of California, Riverside – $15,000
    • San Bernardino Valley College Foundation – $15,000
    • Norco College – $10,000
    • Jurupa Valley Unified School District – $10,000
    • Coachella Valley Unified School District – $10,000
    • Crafton Hills College – $10,000
    • California State University, San Bernardino Philanthropic Foundation – $10,000
    • Moreno Valley College UMOJA Program – $10,000

    Growing Inland Achievement is a regional collective impact organization aimed at increasing postsecondary credential attainment, adding more qualified people to the workforce, and contributing to a thriving economy. To contact GIA please email info@gia.echofactory.dev.

  • Inland Empire Adult and Professional Education Programs Gets Boost from Bank of America

    Inland Empire Adult and Professional Education Programs Gets Boost from Bank of America

    Growing Inland Achievement (GIA), a regional collective impact organization seeking to improve the Inland Empire economy by increasing regional levels of degree attainment, has received a $25,000 grant from Bank of America to support adult and professional education in the Inland Empire.

    GIA facilitates collaboration among regional stakeholders to identify and implement measurable strategies to create institutional change and increase regional educational attainment levels.

    “This generous grant from Bank of America will support GIA’s initiatives to bring together regional leaders to examine viable strategies and review institutional opportunities, alleviating barriers to college education for adult learners,” said Dr. Carlos Ayala, CEO at GIA. “We are very grateful for Bank of America’s commitment to advancing the Inland Empire and improving the quality of life for our residents, especially during these unprecedented times.”

    Families in the Inland Empire struggle with generational poverty and the ability to earn a living wage as a result of low postsecondary education attainment rates. Although the Inland Empire is the most populous region in California, adults here are less likely to pursue higher education than in other areas of the state, and many of those who do enroll in college are not able to finish their education.

    “There is a direct correlation between educational achievement and income, and tackling the Inland Empire’s education gap is key creating sustainable financial stability in the region. The strategic work of Growing Inland Achievement will be even more important following the crisis to prepare adults with the education and skills training for potential new professions,” said Al Arguello, Inland Empire market president, Bank of America.

    “Nearly one in four adults in the Inland Empire has some college attainment but has not completed a degree,” said Sorrel Stielstra, Director of Research at GIA. “We need to open doors for these individuals to return to school, earn postsecondary credentials, thrive in the workforce, and contribute to our regional economy.”

    GIA tracks regional data on educational attainment and its link to the labor market in the region. On average, individuals in the Inland Empire who have earned a Bachelor’s degree earn approximately $24,000 more annually than those with just a high school degree. GIA has plans to host a series of data workshops in the fall to explore the regional alignment between educational and occupational pathways, which may help to inform decision-making in response to the effects of the global pandemic on the region.

    A portion of grant funds from Bank of America will support efforts to identify and recruit key community members to serve on an adult and professional education Action Network Team and accomplish three goals:

    1)    Identify specific areas of support needed for adult learners to return to and/or complete their education;

    2)    Identify realistic implementation strategies;

    3)    Create a data collection and measurement process to measure impact and inform policy.

    Action Network Teams are the backbone of GIA’s collective impact model and bring together the Inland Empire higher education network, regional educators that combine expertise to work toward a vision of student success. 

    Growing Inland Achievement is a bi-county, collective impact intermediary in the Inland Empire that brings together leaders across K-20 education, civic, and business sectors. GIA organizes and collaborates with the Inland Empire Educational Network to create innovative practices that achieve large-scale social and institutional change. Visit our website, inlandempiregia.org, to learn more.

     

  • GIA Grant Funding Available to Support Inland Empire Students

    GIA Grant Funding Available to Support Inland Empire Students

    Grant Funding Available to Support Inland Empire Students

    COVID-19 Emergency Funding of up to $50,000 and Innovation Awards Funding of $150,000 Available for Educational Organizations Supporting Inland Empire Students

    Growing Inland Achievement (GIA), an educational intermediary organization seeking to improve the Inland Empire economy by raising the region’s educational attainment rates, has announced that COVID-19 Emergency Funding is now available for educational organizations supporting critical student needs amidst COVID-19. Organizations may apply for up to $50,000 in funding from now through April 21. Additionally, GIA has extended the application deadline for their $150,000 Innovation Awards to April 30.

    School closures and economic shutdowns due to the global pandemic have created educational and financial challenges for Inland Empire students and institutions. GIA created the COVID-19 emergency fund to assist with immediate challenges the coronavirus pandemic will present for students in the next 3-9 months.

    “The regional effect of the coronavirus requires us to focus on the educational and economic challenges of the present moment to continue the pursuit of the network’s shared vision,” said Ann Marie Sakrekoff, Senior Director at GIA. “After many conversations with our educational partners throughout the region, we have identified three focus areas for the emergency grant funding including; student basic needs support, class of 2020 college transition support, and technology assistance.”

    Awardees of emergency funding will be informed of approval and have funding distributed by May 4, 2020.

    In addition to the COVID-19 emergency funding, GIA will continue with their Innovation Awards which awards grants of $150,000 to organizations working towards accomplishing one or more of five measurable goals:

    • Align educational policy initiatives regionally via cradle-to-career collective impact model.
    • Increase college preparedness, particularly in math, resulting in a 20% reduction in the number of students requiring remediation at matriculation from high school to college within five years. 
    • Increase baccalaureate, associate, certificate, and credential attainment by 15% across the two counties within five years. 
    • Increase the six-year graduation rate by 10% over five years.
    • Improve career preparedness through strengthened partnership with industry to better align education with workforce development needs. 

    Applications for Innovation Awards are due by April 30 and funding is dispersed in two parts to grantee organizations in June 2020 and May 2021.   

    Growing Inland Achievement is a bi-county, educational collaborative in the Inland Empire that brings together leaders across K-20 education, civic, and business sectors. GIA organizes and collaborates with the Inland Empire Educational Network to create innovative practices that achieve large-scale social and institutional change, and prove working together is more impactful than working alone.