Growing Inland Achievement

Category: Support

  • Bank of America Renews their Commitment to Supporting Inland Empire Adult Learners

    Bank of America Renews their Commitment to Supporting Inland Empire Adult Learners

    GIA is pleased to announce a $50,000 grant from the Bank of America Foundation to support adults in the Inland Empire returning to school and obtaining a degree or credential. The Bank of America Foundation first partnered with GIA on this work in 2018 when they supported the formation of the Returning Adult Action Network Team (ANT). 

    “We know that twenty-five percent of adults in the IE have some college but no degree. An additional 26.9% have no postsecondary education,” said Ann Marie Sakrekoff, COO at GIA. “As these adults seek to support their families while living costs continue to increase, many realize the opportunity for education to open doors to career advancement and greater earnings. We are extremely grateful for our continued partnership with Bank of America to help create opportunities for our adult population.”

    GIA and the Returning Adult ANT have identified resources and developed plans to support the unique needs of adult students. Bank of America grant funds will be utilized for outreach campaigns to adults with the intent to enroll in postsecondary education and one-on-one coaching to provide financial, logistical, social, and emotional support for adults starting or continuing their education.

    If you are interested in partnering with GIA on these efforts please contact Ida Hermosillo, Director of Network Engagement, at ida@gia.echofactory.dev.

  • K-16 Collaboratives Grant Administrator (OPSC) to Host Webinar on February 25

    K-16 Collaboratives Grant Administrator (OPSC) to Host Webinar on February 25

    Webinar Date Announced: February 25, 2022

    The office overseeing the Regional K-16 Education Collaboratives Grant Program will be hosting a live webinar on February 25, 2022, at 10:30 a.m. Several participants from the Inland Empire K-16 Education Collaborative (GIA, IEGO, IECF, etc.) will be in attendance to bring details back to Inland Empire stakeholders in a regional debrief meeting at 1:00 p.m. the same day. However, all interested parties are encouraged to participate in the OPSC webinar as well.

    The webinar will include an overview of the grant opportunity, including a Phase 1 round this spring for mature existing collaboratives and a later Phase 2 round of planning and implementation grants for collaboratives in earlier development stages. The webinar will also describe the legal requirements for this program and provide an opportunity for stakeholders and potential applicants to ask questions and share ideas.

    Date: Feb. 25, 2022

    Time: 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (PT)

    Registration: Please register for the OPSC webinar here.

    * Register for the regional debrief and discussion (1:00 p.m. the same day) here.

     

    Established in the 2021 Budget Act, this program is part of a statewide strategy for both strengthening education-to-workforce pathways and ensuring that education, vocational, and workforce programs work in partnership to address the income, racial, and gender inequalities in education and employment.

    This one-time $250 million investment will fund robust regional collaboratives involving K-12 districts, community colleges, state universities, and workforce development entities.

    Learn more about local efforts to work together and collaborate on a united Inland Empire grant application.

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  • Returning Adult Transition Coach Program to be established with support from Bank of America Foundation Grant

    Returning Adult Transition Coach Program to be established with support from Bank of America Foundation Grant

    Adult learners (ages 25+) in the Inland Empire will soon benefit from a new Transition Coach Program developed by GIA and the Returning Adult and Professional Education Action Network Team (ANT). The Bank of America Foundation provided a $40K grant to support the development of the program.

    “Growing Inland Achievement is grateful to the Bank of America Foundation for its ongoing partnership and commitment to helping adult learners in the Inland Empire region,” said Ann Marie Sakrekoff, COO at GIA.

    The Bank of America Foundation’s commitment to raising the educational and economic outlook of the Inland Empire has supported GIA’s work with returning adults since 2019.  As a result, GIA has established an Adult Learner Action Network Team that is coordinating efforts among education leaders and workforce partners to help adults in the region increase their education levels.

    The new Transition Coach Program will support Inland Empire adults 25 years and older who have obtained some college but do not hold a degree or certificate.

    “Navigating the higher education system is complex and having dedicated coaches to support student transition is key to student success,” said Emma Diaz, Ed.D., Director, California Adult Education Program, Inland Adult Education Consortium.

    According to 2017 census data available on GIA’s Data Dashboard, Inland Empire residents with a Bachelor’s degree earn $24K dollars more on average each year than those with only a high school diploma.

    “We have a large number of adults who have some postsecondary credits and may be closer than they realize to earning a degree or certificate,” said Dr. Carlos Ayala, President, and CEO at GIA. “Our goal with these transition coaches is to make the process of returning to college as simple and straightforward as possible.”

    Transition coaches will help individuals identify a career path, enroll in the right classes, apply for financial aid, and link them to additional resources such as childcare, transportation, mental health, or other resources that will support them in completing their education.

    Planning for the new program is currently underway and additional details will be published through GIA’s website and communication channels.

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  • Growing Inland Achievement to Host Workshops on Critical Issues Affecting Students

    Growing Inland Achievement to Host Workshops on Critical Issues Affecting Students

    GIA is pleased to announce the receipt of a grant for $25K from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation to support a new workshop series in partnership with the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools and Riverside County Office of Education. The series titled Building Better from Disruption expands on last fall’s Teens, COVID, and Coping discussions among the region’s two County Superintendents and several school districts.   

    The pandemic has changed education dynamics, affecting students, parents, and educators in ways we had never imagined. National events over the past year have further highlighted the fact that racial inequities in education can no longer be ignored. As we move through the pandemic and into the next iteration of education, there are a multitude of issues that must be addressed.

    “The goal of this workshop series is to involve all 56 school districts in the region, bringing in experts on such subjects as Dual Enrollment; Learning Loss and Learning Gains during COVID; Equity Insights; and Student Assessments, among others,” said Dr. Carlos Ayala, President & CEO at GIA. “Our goal is that these workshops will lead to further discussions and research into selected topics with an actionable plan for systemwide change.” 

    GIA is grateful to the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation for their generous support of this workshop series and their work throughout the country to improve educational outcomes and foster a more equitable society.  

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  • Growing Inland Achievement Receives 1.3M Grant from College Futures Foundation for Capacity Building and Regional College Transfer Work

    Growing Inland Achievement Receives 1.3M Grant from College Futures Foundation for Capacity Building and Regional College Transfer Work

    Growing Inland Achievement (GIA) is pleased to announce receipt of a grant in the amount of $1,318,000 from College Futures Foundation to support GIA core capacity building as well as a Transfer GPS resource to aid student transitions from community colleges to four-year universities.

    “College Futures Foundation is a long-standing supporter of the Inland Empire community, including a grant in October of 2020 to support regional Guided Pathways efforts which provide students a clearer path to graduation,” said Dr. Carlos Ayala, President & CEO at GIA. “We are extremely grateful for their ongoing commitment to preserve and improve educational opportunities and the quality of life for our residents. This added support from the Foundation allows us to continue our work at GIA while focusing on critical areas of student needs such as transfer from our regional community colleges to four-year institutions.”

    Approximately two-thirds of grant funding will support GIA in capacity building, including staff and operational infrastructure. “Our staff plays a key role in facilitating connections between organizations and across sectors, throughout the vast bi-county region of San Bernardino and Riverside counties. These connections lead to increased collaboration, partnerships, and collective impact efforts to achieve regional goals and a shared vision of success for the Inland Empire,” said Ann Marie Sakrekoff, COO at GIA. “In addition, GIA staff provide critical research and data support, and help to identify and generate funding and in-kind resources to support efforts to increase regional educational attainment in the region.”

    The remainder of the grant funds will be utilized to pilot a data analytics-based project called Transfer GPS, in partnership with the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education. The Transfer GPS tool and networked improvement community will help address transfer and equity gap issues by providing broader access to and support for a sophisticated set of analytical tools that help educational institutions quickly acquire and scale their ability to analyze and facilitate student academic progress and completion.

    “Transfer GPS will complement existing regional transfer initiatives and tools, such as Bakersfield College’s Program Pathways Mapper, to inform decisions around college transfer and ultimately help students to plan out the most efficient path to completion or transfer, and reduce unnecessary classes and expenses,” said Ayala. “The Transfer GPS project will deepen our knowledge about how to support and accelerate college transfer in the region, and we are very excited to work with the Gardner Institute alongside our regional colleges to roll out this initiative.”

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