Mott Foundation hails news of national service award that will help drive community education in Flint
The following is a statement from Ridgway White, president of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, regarding today’s announcement that Flint has been awarded federal funding to engage national service members in supporting a new model of community education.
Today marks the start of a new chapter in Flint’s history as an innovator in community education.
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation joins our home community in celebrating news that the city is one of only 10 nationwide selected to receive an Operation AmeriCorps Award through the Corporation for National and Community Service. The two-year, $1.4 million award will enable the city to engage 82 national service members in helping to develop and spread a new approach to community education.
Flint’s long history in community education — and the Mott Foundation’s commitment to it — began in 1935, when Charles Stewart Mott and Frank Manley first explored ways to provide academic and enrichment opportunities for students and families after school and during the summer. The concept took on new life in 2013, when — as part of the city’s master planning process — residents identified it as their top priority.
In response, the Mott Foundation helped to support a number of local efforts, including the development of a new model of community education that was introduced at the city’s Brownell-Holmes STEM Academy in the 2014-2015 school year and will expand to three more schools in the coming year. We also are working with and supporting local funders and nonprofits on an innovative “accelerator” fund that is helping to expand national service and volunteering in Flint. Both are vital to the success of the city’s master plan.
We applaud the dedicated service members already engaged in efforts to reimagine community education in Flint, and we welcome the new perspectives, energy and enthusiasm of those who will join them and help to grow the program. We also congratulate our grantees — the City of Flint, Crim Fitness Foundation, Flint Community Schools and the United Way of Genesee County — that crafted the successful application for the award and will continue to drive progress.
Together, we will work to ensure that Flint Community Schools provide the pathway to opportunity that all students in Flint deserve.