There is nothing more detrimental to a person’s future than education. That’s why AT&T is focused on helping at-risk students graduate high school.
The company recently made a $37,633 donation to Communities In Schools of Miami, Inc. to support site coordinators at North Miami Middle School, North Miami Senior High School, Miami Edison Middle School and Miami Edison Senior High School. Miami-Dade is recognized as one of the lowest performing school districts in the country, with one-in-four students not graduating on time.
Communities In Schools’ school-based site coordinators help connect struggling students with academic support, mentoring, counseling, after-school programs, career development, and health care services. These necessary resources will increase the chance of high school completion and address the dropout crisis.
“We want to invest in organizations that are making a measurable impact on the students they serve and Communities In Schools is doing just that,” said Maria Johnston, Regional Director-External Affairs, AT&T Florida. “By coupling this contribution with the power of our employees, we hope to take our collaboration to the next level and help even more students graduate high school ready for college and careers.”
With support from AT&T last year, nearly 425 Communities In Schools of Miami students received mentoring, tutoring and counseling services. The result? Ninetyfive percent of the students remained in school, 84 percent improved their grades and 84 percent demonstrated reduced behavioral incidents in schools.
“AT&T has demonstrated unparalleled leadership in supporting efforts to create a 21st century education system and American workforce,” said Elizabeth Mejia, Executive Director of Communities In Schools of Miami. “We are grateful for AT&T’s support and long standing collaboration.”
The recent donation to Communities In Schools of Miami is part of a $2 million AT&T contribution that will boost the impact and sustainability of the Communities In Schools network nationwide.
Since 2008, AT&T and the AT&T Foundation have provided more than $8.5 million in funding to Communities In Schools and local affiliates. The support is part of AT&T Aspire, a $350 million commitment to education, and one of the largest-ever corporate commitments to address high school success and workforce readiness.
