GREENVILLE – St. Joseph High School has received a $7,500 grant to further its innovative Google Chromebook Community Initiative.
According to the United Way of Washington County, approximately 30 percent of county residents live at or below the poverty level, making extra funding for nonprofit youth programming difficult or sometimes impossible to obtain. Employees from the Hollandale, Mississippi cotton manufacturing Monsanto site selected three local organizations to receive a total of $20,000 in grants from the Monsanto Fund’s 2015 site grant initiative, including: Living Word After School Enrichment program, St. Joseph and the United Way of Washington County. Representatives from the organizations and the fund celebrated the grants with a group check presentation on Tuesday, June 23.
Funds from the grants will be used by each group to support youth programs.
“We had a successful first year in student use and in production of student-led community problem-solving,” said Paul Artman, principal. The program was started in part thanks to help from the Catholic Foundation. He said he is looking forward to expanding the initiative, which allows high school students to use technology to come up with solutions to problems in their own community.
The Living Word After School plans to support academics and enhance student curriculum. The United Way of Washington County will utilize the grant to fund new technology and community counseling for the Boys & Girls Club.
“This grant will enable Living Word to impact the lives of many children and families in our community,” said Doris Benford, program director at the Living Word After School Enrichment program. “We hope to plant a motivational seed that will inspire children to further their education and carry our students to the bright futures that lie ahead of them. The opportunities arising from this grant will show students that caring community members wish to make a positive difference in their lives.”
For the past three years, employees from the Hollandale site have participated in the United Way Housing Initiative, repairing homes of elderly and disabled people in the community. This is the first year the Hollandale site has partnered with Living Word and St. Joseph Catholic School, but site employees have seen the impact these organizations have on youth throughout the community.
“We are proud to offer grants to three organizations that serve our community,” said Carol Haywood, administrative assistant at the Hollandale site. “The needs of each individual group inspired our nomination, and we feel that supporting each one of these organizations will help improve our schools and strengthen our neighborhoods.”
This year, the Monsanto Fund awarded $1.2 million to nonprofit organizations through the site grant initiative to help address critical needs in rural communities.