On November 24th, Our House, an organization that provides early childhood education for homeless children, received a large grant from the Goizueta Foundation. Decatur Mom reader, Mary Lyons, is the Development Director and she passed on the following press release.
Our House, Inc. is the proud recipient of grant funding in the amount of $387,197 from The Goizueta Foundation. The grant will support personnel and infrastructure which will assist with increasingly efficient agency operations, and the establishment of The Goizueta Foundation Endowed Fund. “This incredible gift will help ensure that Our House is able to sustain its accredited, award-winning early childhood learning programs for homeless children, ages six weeks to five years, and the programs and services that are helping homeless parents achieve self-sufficiency,” says Tyese Lawyer, Executive Director.
The Goizueta Foundation first partnered with Our House in 2000 to provide a bilingual position which enables the agency to incorporate Spanish into the daily instructional curriculum and increase the agency’s capacity to serve Latino constituents. The 2000 grant also supported a Parent Intern Program which provides training and practical work experience to parents interested in employment in the growing childcare sector. “The Goizueta Foundation is on the forefront of foundations which serve as a catalyst to help agencies share lessons learned, in addition to providing support which helps build more effective community programs and services. It’s akin to receiving the Good Housekeeping seal of approval. We deeply appreciate their confidence in our programming,” states Lawyer.
Our House, Inc. offers a safe, structured, educational environment for young children, aged six weeks to five years, who are from families living in area shelters or transitional housing. Currently, forty-four children a day are enrolled in Our House, which holds the most prestigious recognition available to any child care program: accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). As soon as the children are enrolled, their parents work with the agency’s Family Advocates to begin to set goals and to develop plans to transition from crisis to stability. Our House has a measurable record of helping homeless parents find jobs, secure housing and complete training that helps them break the cycles of homelessness and poverty. During the agency’s 2007-08 fiscal year, Our House held a Capital Campaign, chaired by Gayle Gellerstedt, which successfully raised more than $1.2 million to build a new 4,000 square foot addition, and to renovate the current 3,200 square foot facility. When all construction is completed, the facility will be able to serve an additional 34 homeless children daily.
For more information, visit the Our House website at www.OurHousega.org
Congratulations to Our House!
