At its July 11th, 2017, board meeting, the board made the following grants:
Cochiti Elementary School — $5,000. This grant is in support of the RunFit program at Cochiti Elementary School. This grant will also be used to defray the cost of having a NDI (National Dance Institute) program at Cochiti. We made a grant of $10,000 to Cochiti back in 2014 in partial support of RunFit.
North American Butterfly Center — $2,500. This grant is in support of the First Offender Program. First offender youth will receive training and mentoring at the Center.
Atomic Museum — $4,000. This grant is in support of STEM Education at the Museum.
El Ranchito — $10,000. This grant is in support of foster care programs at El Ranchito. El Ranchito places an emphasis on keeping foster care siblings together as a family unit.
Identity Inc. — $10,000. This grant is in support of a project to create a safe place where the LBGTQ community can meet. Identity Inc. uses licensed counselors to provide support to the LBGTQ community.
Bridges for Education — $5,000. This grant is in support of programs at Bridges designed to guide first generation college goers through the college application and scholarship process. We made a grant of $25,000 to Bridges back in 2014 in support of college preparedness programs.
Paws & Stripes — $25,000. This grant will help build a Community Conference Room. This is part of a $1.5 million expansion program designed to create a national training center. Paws & Stripes matches shelter dogs with returning vets. By forming a human–animal bond, Paws & Stripes hopes to provide relief from the symptoms associated with conditions such as PTSD and TBI (traumatic brain injury).
University of Texas at Dallas — $5,000. The Foundation’s Minka Scholarship Program has teamed up with the geosciences department at the University of Texas at Dallas and has made a grant to the James L. Carter Scholarship in Geosciences. Scholarships from the Carter Scholarship fund will support masters students studying geosciences. Dr. Carter taught in the geosciences department at UTD for forty years.
Congratulations to all of our Summer 2017 grant recipients!