New York Life Foundation Invests in Expanding Access to Summer and Afterschool Learning
BellXcel, a national education nonprofit, today announced a $3 million, three-year grant from the New York Life Foundation that will help the organization to expand access to evidence-based summer and afterschool learning for 12,000 at-risk middle-schoolers across the U.S.
This grant will help BellXcel develop new solutions to support its national network of program partners, which aim to strengthen the academic and social-emotional skills of middle school students. BellXcel programs have been proven to yield measurable gains in academics and social-emotional learning. Last summer, BellXcel scholars gained two and a half months of math skills and two months of reading skills through five to six-week programs, reversing summer learning loss.
"The New York Life Foundation has been a strong supporter of BellXcel since 2007 because its proven success in the out-of-school time space aligns with our efforts to ensure that youth have year-round holistic learning experiences that develop important academic and social emotional skills," said Marlyn Torres, senior program officer, New York Life Foundation. "We are dedicated to expanding access to high-quality out-of-school time programs for middle school students because they help prepare youth for long-term success."
The New York Life Foundation's funding will enhance BellXcel's service offerings, including the development of an innovative technology platform that will allow for greater customization of program offerings to better meet the needs of BellXcel partners. It will also allow BellXcel to provide hundreds of middle school educators with professional development and in-service learning opportunities to enhance their teaching practice...