$1.2 Million in Grants to Promote Health, Well-Being of Local Preteens

PALO ALTO, Calif. – The board of directors of the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health has approved more than $1.2 million in grants to children’s organizations serving preteens in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, foundation President David Alexander, MD, announced today.

Among the grants is $100,000 over two years to Citizen Schools, a program that will provide after-school mentoring and academic support to low-income middle school students in both counties, to foster leadership skills and awareness of community issues. The grant will support the program five days a week at six schools, and students will work alongside volunteer professionals in a variety of fields.

“Out-of-school time is a key concern when considering the emotional and behavioral health of children during the critical preteen years,” Alexander said. “Many risky behaviors take place in the after-school hours. We support Citizen Schools and similar programs to ensure that they have the resources to meet the highest standards for quality.”

The foundation recently commissioned a study that outlines quality standards for after-school programs for preteens. The full report and resource guide can be viewed at http://www.lpfch.org/afterschool.

The foundation’s new grants support 10 nonprofit organizations that offer programs for preteens. All except the Santa Clara County Office of Education have received previous grants from the foundation.

Grants in Santa Clara County

Six of the grants, totaling $790,000, will be awarded to organizations in Santa Clara County, which has a child population of about 445,000, according to www.kidsdata.org.

Asian American Recovery Services, Inc.: $220,000 over two years for Em-Power (Vietnamese for Sister Power), an after-school pilot program designed to promote the resiliency of preteen Asian Pacific Islander girls through culturally competent mentoring, counseling, group projects and events.

Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County: $135,000 over two years for El Toro Youth Center, which provides after-school academic, behavioral and developmental support for preteens from low-income, Spanish-speaking families in Morgan Hill.

Mexican American Community Services Agency: $135,000 over three years for Gilroy Zero Drop Out Leadership Academies, to offer year-round programming to build leadership qualities, cultural pride and academic skills for Latino preteens living in poverty.

Sacred Heart Community Service: $115,000 over two years for Turn the Tide Youth Education Program, which provides after-school mentoring, academic assistance, social and cultural enrichment and family support services to students in fourth through eighth grades from low-income neighborhoods near downtown San Jose.

Santa Clara County Office of Education: $90,000 over three years for the Santa Clara County After School Collaborative, which aims to strengthen and expand a network of after-school programs so that they can share information, leverage efforts and access resources such as staff trainings, as well as implement strategies to address systemic shortages in qualified staff for after-school programs.

Third Street Community Center: $95,000 over two years for After School Program, which aims to promote leadership, foster resiliency and increase academic achievement in low-income preteens who attend Horace Mann Elementary in downtown San Jose.

Grants in San Mateo County

Three of the grants, totaling $365,000, will be awarded to organizations in San Mateo County, which has a child population of about 167,000.

Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula: $160,000 over two years for the Pre-Teen Program, to support an after-school enrichment program offering a variety of services to high-need middle school students in East Palo Alto, east Menlo Park and Redwood City.

Coastside Children’s Programs: $105,000 over two years for the Preteen Youth Enrichment Program, to provide ongoing after-school enrichment activities such as special creative presentations, as well as staff training at three elementary schools along the San Mateo County coast.

Mid-Peninsula Boys and Girls Club: $100,000 over two years for CORE Enrichment Programs, College Park, which offers school-aligned skill-building, enrichment and recreational programs to fourth and fifth graders living in the College Park neighborhood of San Mateo.

Funds for the grants program come from the foundation’s endowment and a partnership grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Since December 2000, the foundation has awarded 385 grants, totaling $34,125,914 to 171 different nonprofit organizations.

The foundation is a public charity whose mission is to “promote, protect, and sustain the physical, mental, emotional and behavioral health of children.” For more information about the foundation’s community grantmaking program, call (650) 736-0675, or visit http://www.lpfch.org/cshcn/grants.