The Adobe Foundation Awards $45,000 Grant to Project Access

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., July 10, 2013 – A grant of $45,000 from the Adobe Foundation, located in San Jose, California, has recently been awarded to Project Access, a leading provider of vital health, education and employment services for families, children and seniors living in low-income housing communities.

The funds will help to improve the academic performances of approximately 500 grade school and high school students enrolled in the organization’s 2013 After-School Tutoring and Enrichment Program in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area.

The program is implemented onsite at Project Access Family Resource Centers located in each of 14 low-income housing communities, including six in San Jose.

Students participate in tutoring, homework help, computer/ technology skills development, arts and crafts, nutrition education with healthy snacks, and age- appropriate activities. Positive role models, including Project Access staff and college interns, mentor them.

“We are pleased to receive this generous grant and will put it to good use,” said Project Access CEO Kristin Byrnes. ”Our ultimate goal for children and older youths is to help them become motivated learners so they complete school, go on to higher education, and establish themselves in well-paying careers.”

Byrnes said that all of the students are from families that have qualified to live in affordable housing based on their low-income status. They are considered the working poor, whose substandard wages make it difficult to provide even basic necessities. Many have annual incomes as low as $10,000 per household.

“Our program is year-round and evaluated each school year,” she said. “We measure outcomes using multiple evaluation tools. To ensure the students are growing and improving in their scholastic endeavors, we collect report cards and monitor the results. We are happy to report that the improvement rates of our students are significantly higher compared to national averages compiled through 21st Century Community Learning Centers grantees across the country.”

“The Adobe Foundation wishes you every success in your important work,” wrote Adobe Foundation Executive Director Michelle Yates in a letter to Project Access. Project Access has more than 45 Resource Centers located in low-income housing communities in Southern and Northern California and soon in Colorado.

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