American Student Assistance® (ASA), a national nonprofit changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures, today announced that the organization has awarded $17.7 million to 30 mission-aligned, youth-serving nonprofits serving at least 14 states.
The grants will significantly scale access to opportunities to improve career readiness outcomes for middle and high schoolers, specifically in the areas of work-based learning, social capital, education and career pathways, and career exploration.
The Immokalee Foundation has been awarded a three-year $292,000 grant to fund their award-winning Career Pathways program, which begins in middle school and gives students from families in Immokalee an opportunity to learn about in-demand careers that provide a living wage.
“At ASA, over the past five years, our philanthropic grantmaking efforts in the youth career readiness arena have been critical in gaining valuable insight on what works best for young people, fueling innovation, expanding opportunity, elevating voices, and informing needed policy change. We congratulate our newest cohort of grantees for the hard-earned outcomes they’ve achieved, and we look forward to continuing our work with mission-aligned organizations looking to move the career-connected learning field forward to drive policy and systems change,” said Julie Lammers, Executive Vice President, American Student Assistance (ASA).
The Immokalee Foundation’s Career Pathways program enables students to discover new pathways to success and financial independence through robust programming that prepares them for professional careers in Business Management & Entrepreneurship, Education & Human Services, Engineering & Construction Management and Healthcare.
“We are extremely grateful to have been included on this list of beneficiaries representing prominent national organizations in manufacturing, education, healthcare, social impact and more,” said Noemi Y. Perez, president & CEO of The Immokalee Foundation. “This list also profoundly reflects industries many of our students have set their sights on. ASA’s tremendous support is going to make career dreams come true.”
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About American Student Assistance® (ASA): ASA is a national nonprofit at the forefront of changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures through access to career readiness information and experiences for all. ASA helps middle and high school students to know themselves—their strengths and their interests— and understand their education and career options so that they can make informed decisions. ASA fulfills its mission–in schools and beyond the classroom–by providing free digital experiences, including Futurescape®, Next Voice™, and EvolveMe®, directly to millions of students, and through advocacy, impact investing, research, thought leadership, and philanthropic support for educators, intermediaries, and others. ASA fosters a generation of confident, crisis-proof young people who are ready for whatever path comes next after high school. To learn more about ASA, visit www.asa.org/about-asa.
