CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Greenhouse Scholars, an education non-profit that cultivates extraordinary leaders to change low-income families and communities, announced its expansion into North Carolina.
A generous donation of $500,000 – the organization’s largest single pledge to date – has allowed Greenhouse Scholars to build upon its success in Colorado, Illinois and Georgia and establish its first program for North Carolina students to help maximize their impact to their communities during college and beyond. Since 2005, Greenhouse Scholars has helped under-resourced, high-performing young people reach their true potential through a comprehensive and innovative program.
“We are truly honored and humbled by the level of support that has enabled us to expand to North Carolina,” said Pete Burridge, President and CEO of Greenhouse Scholars. “Our goal is to help our Scholars in North Carolina become catalysts for lasting change in their families and communities.”
While the region is experiencing tremendous growth, many students in North Carolina still face an uphill climb: one in four children in the state lives below the poverty line. Charlotte ranks in the bottom 3% nationally for economic mobility and Durham County ranks in the bottom 6%, according to a 2015 Harvard study. Dozens of community members in North Carolina have already stepped forward to help Greenhouse Scholars through donations, corporate sponsorship and volunteer service.
Greenhouse Scholars provides professional, personal, and financial support throughout college for students who have overcome great challenges such as homelessness, poverty, violence, and other dire circumstances to become leaders in their schools and communities. Once accepted into the program, Scholars receive professional networking, peer support, mentorship, internships, financial support (in the form of tuition scholarships and “flex funding” grants), skills modules, a strategic impact framework, and an annual Summer Symposium.
Greenhouse Scholars’ approach has shown dramatic results. The organization boasts a bachelor’s degree graduation rate of more than 90%, significantly higher than the national average for low-income students. In addition, the more than 220 Scholars the program has served have a lasting impact well beyond their own academic success, mentoring more than 12,000 middle and high school students.
The inaugural class of Greenhouse Scholars in North Carolina will be announced in spring of this year. For information on becoming a volunteer or mentor in North Carolina, please email Allison Wallace at awallace@greenhousepartners.org. To make a gift to Greenhouse Scholars, please visit https://greenhousescholars.org/donate/.
About Greenhouse Scholars
Greenhouse Scholars, an education non-profit organization founded in 2005, serves low-income college students who are exceptionally high performing. Scholars are selected based on academic achievement, service to community, demonstrated leadership skills, and financial need. Through its "Whole Person" approach of intellectual, academic, professional, and financial support, Greenhouse Scholars cultivates leaders to change low-income families and communities. To date, Greenhouse Scholars has served more than 220 students in Colorado, Illinois, and Georgia. For more information, visit www.greenhousescholars.org.
