Deloitte Foundation Awards Grants to Fund Education Initiatives in Eight Original COVID-19 Hot Spot Locations

STAMFORD, Conn., Aug. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Deloitte Foundation has donated a total of $600,000 to nonprofit organizations in eight original COVID-19 hot spot locations across the country. The intent is to assist those from underrepresented backgrounds and under-resourced communities, primarily students of color, to persist on pathways to college and career success. The Foundation, whose mission is to help develop future talent through a variety of education initiatives, made these COVID-19 grants in response to the extraordinary disruption to student learning due to the pandemic and related economic fallout.

The grants are providing a variety of benefits, including college scholarships for graduating seniors; enhanced online content to accommodate virtual programming; broadband access for virtual online learning programs and internships; technology and technical support to help close the digital divide. In addition, the grants help fuel educator training to aid students who have experienced loss and adversity during the pandemic in building resilience as well as strategies to cope through new life circumstances.

Students in vulnerable communities may struggle to continue their educational journeys through high school and to college due to a myriad of challenges they face in these turbulent times, such as lack of access to hardware, limited broadband connectivity and financial instability due to job losses in their households. Nonprofit organizations that work to empower these students to stay on track with their educational goals during this pandemic must adapt to continue serving students. This can include pivoting to virtual offerings and acquiring new technology platforms, training educators to work in a virtual environment and developing additional resources to help the students continue to thrive.

"Deloitte Foundation's steadfast commitment to supporting education matters even more given COVID-19 and the resulting disproportionate economic impact it has had on vulnerable students," remarked Tonie Leatherberry, president, Deloitte Foundation, and principal, Deloitte & Touche LLP . "This support for diverse learners to participate and persist on pathways from high school to college and careers is particularly important to help mitigate the potential for existing inequalities to intensify in the long-term and develop a more equitable future workforce."

The Foundation worked with leadership in eight key locations to identify and offer one-time grants to nonprofit organizations that support educational needs of underrepresented, under-resourced high school students with the potential to deliver significant reach with tangible, measurable results. Eighteen nonprofit organizations in Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York City, Northern/Central New Jersey, Philadelphia and South Florida received funds:

• 5,000 Role Models of Excellence Project, Inc.
• After School Matters
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami
• City Year Inc.
• Detroit Public Schools Foundation
• Good Grief Inc.
• Junior Achievement of New Jersey
• Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City for the Summer Bridge 2020 program
• More Than Words
• One Hundred Black Men of South Florida, Inc.
• Philadelphia Education Fund
• Philadelphia Futures
• Ron Burton Training Village
• Role Model Movement Inc./My Block My Hood My City
• United Way for Southeast Michigan for the Tech Fund for Detroit's Students
• The New Jersey Chamber of Commerce Foundation for the Jobs for America's Graduates program
• The Opportunity Network
• The Posse Foundation

About the Deloitte Foundation
The Deloitte Foundation, founded in 1928, is a not-for-profit organization that supports education in the U.S. through a variety of initiatives that help develop the next generation of diverse business leaders and their influencers and promote excellence in teaching, research and curriculum innovation. The Foundation sponsors an array of national programs relevant to a variety of professional services, benefiting high school students, undergraduates, graduate students and educators. Learn more about the Deloitte Foundation.

About Deloitte
Deloitte provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax and advisory services to many of the world's most admired brands, including nearly 90% of the Fortune 500® and more than 7,000 private companies. Our people work across the industry sectors that drive and shape today's marketplace — delivering measurable and lasting results that help reinforce public trust in our capital markets, inspire clients to see challenges as opportunities to transform and thrive, and help lead the way toward a stronger economy and a healthy society. Deloitte is proud to be part of the largest global professional services network serving our clients in the markets that are most important to them. Now celebrating 175 years of service, our network of member firms spans more than 150 countries and territories. Learn how Deloitte's more than 312,000 people worldwide make an impact that matters at www.deloitte.com.

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Deloitte Services LP
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SOURCE Deloitte Foundation

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