MDC Awarded Gates Foundation Grant to Launch New Initiative in North Carolina and Texas
MDC has received a $1.8 million grant from the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to create and lead a program to help low-income young adults in four communities complete their postsecondary education and acquire good jobs.
"Too often low-income young adults are unable to see a clear path to a meaningful career, in part due to misconceptions about the full range of postsecondary options available to them," said David Dodson, president of MDC.
Called
Partners for Postsecondary Success, the program is helping partnerships in Charlotte and Raleigh, N.C., and Brownsville and Amarillo, Texas, examine historical barriers to postsecondary completion within the their communities, and to work to find solutions to connect more young people with living-wage jobs.
"As our economy is demanding increasing skills, the economic viability of cities is directly tied to the education of their citizens," said Hilary Pennington, director of Education, Postsecondary Success, and Special Initiatives for the Gates Foundation. "The lessons learned though the
Partners for Postsecondary Success project will provide valuable insight into what communities can do to make college completion happen."
Lead organizations will coordinate the work of the partnerships in each city. The lead organizations are:
Read the full press release here.