New program seeks to Elev8 east Balto. youth, families

A program new to Baltimore is aiming to help nearly 500 families on the east side succeed by focusing specifically on its young people.
City, school system and community leaders welcomed a $12 million grant from the Atlantic Philanthropies yesterday to implement Elev8 [pronounced “elevate”]. Atlantic Philanthropies is an international foundation with a focus on children and youth.

The East Baltimore Development Inc. (EBDI) will administer Elev8 Baltimore, that is designed to improve educational and social outcomes for middle-grade youth and their families. The grant is part of a national effort to prepare youth for high school and continue on to graduation.

“This is huge for us,” said Baltimore City Schools CEO Dr. Andres Alonso. “This is exactly the type of partnerships we need in this city.”

The grant will allow Elev8 Baltimore to transform Collington Square School for the Arts, Dr. Rayner Browne Academy, Tench Tilghman Elementary/Middle School and the new East Baltimore Community School, which opened in August.

The Elev8 Baltimore network will demonstrate how school-based integration and family engagement can positively influence efforts in low-income areas via comprehensive, age-appropriate health services, after-school and summer learning opportunities and access to information about valuable public programs, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit and child health care coverage.

Elev8 also connects parents with economic resources for their families and engages them in schools and community activities. Elev8 will share lessons from its work with policymakers on the local, state and national levels to help influence the ways in which young people are prepared for the future.

Baltimore is one of only four locations nationwide where Elev8 is making a difference in the lives of its participants.

Check the Baltimore Examiner site later for more details, photos and reaction to Elev8’s arrival in Charm City.