Your gift this holiday season will help grow this incredible community of support for young families and fuel our ambitious plans in 2022, including:
- Supporting our largest class of Scholars in Generation Hope’s History (150 Scholars by July 2022).
- Increasing the number of families we support in Next Generation Academy (40 by July 2022) and expanding our curriculum to support children into their early elementary years.
- Working with two cohorts of higher education institutions through our technical assistance program, FamilyU, helping them create deep institutional change that results in improved student parent outcomes.
- Implementing our first-ever policy and advocacy agenda to address the systemic barriers facing student parents, with a focus on (1) higher education access and affordability, (2) economic mobility, and (3) quality childcare access and affordability.
As Generation Hope Scholar Nakwari says: “Last year, my daughter and I experienced a period of homelessness due to domestic violence. Generation Hope provided so much support. Now I have my own place, my daughter is enrolled in an amazing daycare center, and I will graduate in December from Bowie State University. I am truly grateful for the financial and emotional support I received from Generation Hope.”
Scholar Alumnus Joseph (Howard University ‘19) shares more about what the Generation Hope community means to him:
“Generation Hope is my family. Our community is rare to find. Without Generation Hope, I would have given up a long time ago. This community is responsible for 90% of the man I’ve become in the way they cared for and nurtured me. They gave me the opportunity to take a leap of faith knowing that if I fell hard, I would have people around me to help me get back up. I took that opportunity and did so many things with it. Education gave me the confidence to go into any room and stand on my own.”
Scholar Marilyn (Prince George’s Community College) explains why supporting parenting students is so important:
“It is important to support parenting students because they’re fighting to beat the odds. When a student parent has a support circle, stress and anxiety are reduced, and it motivates the parent to keep on going. It gives strength to accomplish one’s dream. I love school. I’m happy to be privileged to attend.”
Finally, Scholar Bryony (University of Maryland, College Park) provides insights about why Generation Hope’s model makes all the difference for student parents:
“Generation Hope is a gift to student parents. Their wraparound services and continuous innovations to improve access to education for young parents are life-changing. Seeing student parents like myself overcome adversities, balance work-life schedules, and achieve economic growth encourages me to push through trying times.”