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As states all over the country reel with the ripple effects of the current pandemic, the talk and planning of budget cuts is already proceeding. School districts, especially, are feeling the brunt of school closures and the “what ifs” for the coming school year. With Colorado school districts looking to trim millions of dollars from the budget, financial aid programs like Send-a-School have never been more important for low-income, at-risk students and schools.
The Send-a-School scholarship program began at Young Americans Center back in 2004 and has enabled the Center to proudly say that no school has ever been turned away from taking part in one of our programs due to funding. In 2019, the program allowed 8,603 low-income students to participate in either Young AmeriTowne or International Towne. These programs provide students lifelong financial literacy skills that the students take home and share with their families, statistically shown in longitudinal study preliminary findings.
Send-a-School is made possible through the support of corporations and foundations who are committed to advancing equitable education throughout Colorado. The Aegon Transamerica Foundation has been one of those supporters since 2017, helping thousands of low-income, at-risk youth learn valuable workforce readiness or global economic skills. Marijn Smit, Head of Transamerica Asset Management and Chair of the Denver Advisory Committee, speaks on the importance of the Send-a-School program. “Transamerica is committed to supporting the communities where our employees live and work. We understand that the pandemic and related economic crisis are leaving schools in our community with increased scholarship needs, particularly for low-income and at-risk students. The Send-a-School program’s mission to improve financial literacy aligns with our values as a company, and we are proud to contribute our support.”
Thanks to funders like Aegon Transamerica Foundation, the Center has seen continual growth in the number of low-income students served each year. The education these students receive will help them grow up to be financially savvy adults, diminishing their chances of financial fragility that leave many vulnerable during a crisis such as the one we all are going through now. Thank you, Aegon Transamerica Foundation, for years of equipping low-income, deserving youth with the tools they need to be self-sufficient adults.
Want to help fund a low-income school take part in the Center’s proven, standards-aligned programs? Click here to donate and make a difference in a Colorado student’s life today.
