Youth and Education in the Virgin Islands
Throughout the St. Croix Foundation’s existence, the community has consistently identified the need for targeted grant opportunities and educational resources for educators and students. In response, the Foundation has committed itself to focusing significant attention on education and youth. Our goal is to expand existing programs and to offer new, comprehensive educational and youth initiatives in support of the community’s young people.
Model Schools Initiative
In the fall of 2005, the Foundation launched a comprehensive Model Schools Initiative, seeking to fulfill our long-term goal of developing a strategic and collaborative approach to improving our public education system.
Our VISION is that, given high quality educational curriculum, resources and community supports, our public school students will be armed and ready to compete in a 21st Century global economy. In the end, we recognize, all too well, that the success and well-being of our young people is the single greatest insurance for the economic and social welfare of the Virgin Islands.
For more about the Model Schools Initiative, click here.
To download the full Model School Initiative Report, click here .
Sprint to Excellence Grant Program
As an extension of the highly successful Model Schools Initiative, St. Croix Foundation’s Sprint to Excellence Grant Program seeks to support 21st Century best practices in St. Croix’s public and small private and parochial schools.
Sprint to Excellence (STE) grants, of up to $10,000 per school, will be awarded for high impact academic-based projects that serve to enhance student engagement, teacher quality and innovative instruction. To ensure the highest degree of accountability and focus in meeting outlined goals and timelines, strict reporting guidelines and PHASED grant award disbursements have been developed.
For more about the Sprint to Excellence program, click here.
Youth Philanthropy
Created in the summer of 2009, St. Croix Foundation’s Youth Advisory Council (YAC) is comprised of burgeoning youth leaders from St. Croix’s public and private high schools who have been introduced to the world of philanthropy and charitable giving through targeted instructional curriculum. YAC students are also being guided to make meaningful changes that impact their community (specifically youth) in innovative and sustainable ways.
For the past two months the Council has been disseminating a survey which they created entitled, “Answers for Change”. This survey is intended to generate data from 7th- 12th graders in public and private schools on St. Croix. Survey questions address issues facing youth in both their personal lives and the quality of education they are receiving. Once tabulated, the survey results will be shared with the Community at a upcoming Youth Forum.
To learn more about YAC, from the students themselves, click here.
St. Croix Foundation Other Educational Programs & Funds
Since 2002, the St. Croix Foundation has developed what we think is a progressive collection of educational funds and grant resources to accomplish our goal of addressing significant deficiencies, especially in the area of literacy. Our Donor Advised Funds are expanding each year to encompass a broader cross-section of the population. Annually, upwards of $100,000 is granted through the Foundation to worthwhile youth and educational initiatives that support the ambitions of talented young people on the island of St. Croix.
For more information about the Foundation’s educational programs and funds, click here.
