U-46 Educational Foundation

Description

The U-46 Educational Foundation began with a group of concerned citizens meeting in January 2007 to discuss the educational needs of School District U-46 students. School District U-46 is made up of 53 Illinois schools, preschool through high school. We educate 36,000 students. Of those students, 57% come from low-income homes. Our students are 55.9% Hispanic, 25% white, 8.5% Asian, 6% black, 3.3% more than one race/ethnicity. 36.8% of our students are English learners. 1.4% of our students are homeless. These concerned community members believed that quality educational opportunities could build brighter futures for our students, and, thereby, brighter futures for our entire community. More than fifteen years have passed since that initial meeting, but our focus remains the same, creating meaningful and engaging educational opportunities for our students.

During the first semester, the Foundation provides grants to our teachers and staff and our community partners. Our teacher and staff grants fund the innovative projects and ideas that our teachers have that fall outside the limits of a school's normal operating budget.

During the second semester, the Foundation focuses on providing graduating seniors with scholarships to help them pursue post-secondary education. In a typical year, we award about $50,000 in scholarships.