[NEWS] Seeds of Literacy Receives $25,000 Spectrum Digital Education Grant
Originally published by FreshWater Cleveland July 09, 2024
Spectrum officials announced on Saturday, June 29 that it has awarded Seeds of Literacy a $25,000 Spectrum Digital Education grant for expanding its virtual classroom.
Specializing in GED preparation, Seeds of Literacy provides free personalized education to empower adults with an easily accessible adult literacy program, which is offered to Ohio residents of Ohio.
The organization will use the funding to expand its virtual classroom—securing laptops, connectivity and recruiting more tutors. The $25,000 grant is the second Spectrum Digital Education Grant awarded to Seeds of Literacy, bringing Spectrum’s total support for the organization to $65,000 over the past two years.
“The importance of expanding access to essential broadband technologies, education, and training is profound in our increasingly digital world,” group vice president of community impact with Spectrum’s Charter Communications Rahman Khan said in a statement. “Through the Spectrum Digital Education grant program, Charter is partnering with valued nonprofits that share our commitment to create better opportunities for the communities we serve.”
Spectrum presented the check to Seeds of Literacy the celebration and graduation ceremony of more than 100 Seeds graduates.
“Our students are truly remarkable,” Seeds of Literacy president and CEO Bonnie Entler said in a statement. “Their willingness to adapt to the virtual classroom was surprising and their willingness to stay virtual when classrooms reopened was completely unexpected. Grants from organizations like Spectrum are helping us to keep up with this ever-growing and unanticipated demand.”
Seeds of Literacy serves nearly 1,500 adults annually who are on the path to earning their high school equivalency. The organization relies on more than 200 volunteer tutors to make the program successful, which is free for students and relies on community support to help make a difference in the lives of adult learners.
Seeds of Literacy is one of 46 nonprofit organizations across 14 states that Spectrum has supported through the 2023 Spectrum Digital Education grants.
Since the program’s 2017 launch, Spectrum has committed more than $9 million total to the initiative and has awarded 261 grants to 143 unique partners. As of September 2023, Spectrum Digital Education has helped fund more than 30,000 digital education classes, distribute more than 13,000 devices, including laptops, and supported the creation of 157 tech labs.
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