Edu-Futuro
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Mission Statement
To empower immigrant and underserved youth and families through mentorship, education, leadership development, parent engagement, case management, and workforce development.
About This Cause
Edu-Futuro is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Arlington, Fairfax, and Prince William Counties, and the City of Alexandria, founded in 1998. Edu-Futuro empowers underserved youth and families, immigrants, and first-generation college students through mentorship, education, leadership development, parent engagement, case management, and workforce development. In the past 26 years, we have grown from a group of fewer than a dozen volunteers to a nonprofit with a professional staff and AmeriCorps members, engaging nearly 300 volunteers per year. To engage students’ families in their academic success, Edu-Futuro offers comprehensive programs for youth: The Emerging Leaders Program (ELP), and adults: Parent Empowerment Services (PES), Workforce Development Services (WDS), and Case Management Services (CMS) throughout Northern Virginia. Edu-Futuro uses research-based, inter-generational approaches that ensure immigrant and low-income youth and families attain postsecondary goals, improve long-term financial stability, and strengthen interfamily cohesiveness. In FY 2023, Edu-Futuro provided 5,111 unduplicated services to more than 2,000 families, positively impacting 4,350 children, youth, and adults in Fairfax, Arlington, Prince William counties, and the City of Alexandria. Our clients are diverse; 75% are Latin@/Latinx, 12% are White/Caucasian/Not Hispanic/Latino, 8% are Black/African-American, 4% are Asian, and 1% are Native Hawaiian. More than 80% of our students receive free or reduced-price lunch and more than 90% of all our families classify as having low, very low, or extremely low income under Community Development Block Grant guidelines. Strengthening the college pipeline for these families is critical, as higher education remains essential for socioeconomic mobility and strengthening equity in our communities. • YOUTH PROGRAMS - EMERGING LEADERS PROGRAM The Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) provides comprehensive academic enrichment and youth programs, including civic engagement and STEM Robotics programming, at four stages: Our Emerging Leaders Program enhances the leadership abilities of at least 460 students annually; empowering them to achieve academically, pursue higher education, and launch successful careers. Through our formalized partnerships with the public school systems in Arlington, Fairfax Prince William, and the City of Alexandria, we go to where our students and parents are, to deliver our after-school and evening programs for children, youth, and adults. Edu-Futuro utilizes a Two-Generation service model that allows our staff to impact parents and children in the same household simultaneously, creating a household dynamic in which parents are inspired by the academic advancement of their children, and in turn, youth are motivated by the economic progress of their parents. No other community-based organization in Northern Virginia provides our level of comprehensive bilingual and culturally competent services. Our major programs include: • The Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) provides long-term support for college and career readiness in four consecutive stages. ELP STEM Robotics introduces middle school students to skills and career pathways in science, technology, engineering, and math; ELP-I helps high school students develop leadership and life skills for college success; ELP-II guides high school seniors through the college application, acceptance, and financial aid process; and ELP-III orients and supports first-generation college students with one-on-one mentorship and workshops to prepare them for graduation and their first professional jobs. • The Chronic Absenteeism Program (CAP) is a partnership with Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) that allows a three-person bilingual outreach team from Edu-Futuro to contact and work with the families of hundreds of immigrant and Latino students who have missed more than 10% of their classes and are in danger of dropping out of school. • ADULT PROGRAMS • Parent Empowerment Services (PES) provide resources for parents and caregivers from immigrant backgrounds to overcome language and cultural barriers, learn how to navigate the U.S. school system and address challenges that prevent them from fully participating and advocating for their children’s education. • Workforce Development Services (WDS) support immigrant parents with bilingual computer/smartphone instruction, resume and cover letter writing, job interview coaching, employment counseling, and GED training, enabling them to secure new and better-paying jobs. • Case Management Services (CMS) offer direct social services to immigrant families in crisis, including health navigation and emergency funding for rent and utilities. In response to the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020, Edu-Futuro revamped our existing CMS program, significantly increased our staff capacity, and started an Emergency Assistance Fund to supplement community and government aid efforts. Following this expansion, we are now one the largest providers of direct financial aid in the entire Washington, D.C. region: helping to stabilize more than 1,500 households and disbursing more than $2 million for rent, food, medicine, utilities, and other basic necessities. Despite the enormous, ongoing obstacles of the pandemic, some of our recent accomplishments include: • In 2023, the 47 students who participated in our flagship ELP-II program successfully graduated from high school, joining the 45 students who graduated in 2022, and the 83 students who graduated in 2021. We are very proud to report that these 175 outstanding high school seniors refused to let the COVID crisis steal their dream of a college education, and worked tirelessly with our staff to earn approximately $7.5 million in scholarships and financial aid for their first year of college, and a remarkable $26 million in four-year renewable scholarships and financial aid. • In response to an alarming increase in chronic absenteeism among Latino and English Learners, Edu-Futuro proposed an initiative to Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) in April 2021 that resulted in the creation of a three-person Parent and Youth Outreach Team tasked with contacting hard-to-reach students and their families, identifying the reasons why youth were missing school, and then working to return students back to the classroom. Of the 376 student referrals with valid contact information provided by FCPS during the past two years, Edu-Futuro was able to return 248 back to the classroom – an excellent success rate of approximately 66%. Due to the positive results produced by the outreach team, Edu-Futuro was recently awarded a five-year contract by FCPS to not only continue but to expand the Chronic Absenteeism Program (CAP) starting in January 2024. • On July 24, 2023, Edu-Futuro was named Southeast Affiliate of the Year by UnidosUS, the largest Latino civil rights organization in the United States with nearly 300 nonprofit member organizations nationwide. The award is an honor bestowed on UnidosUS East Coast affiliates located from Pennsylvania to Florida for their exemplary work on behalf of disadvantaged families and specifically commended Edu-Futuro’s dedication to the Latino community throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The recognition was presented to Edu-Futuro’s Executive Director, Jorge Figueredo, during the 2023 UnidosUS Annual Conference in Chicago, along with a $10,000 grant. • We are also proud to report that on September 28, 2023, ELP was once again selected as a Finalist for “Examples of Excelencia!” by Excelencia in Education, the only national data-driven initiative to recognize programs accelerating Latino student success in higher education. Of this year’s 103 submissions from 19 states, D.C., and Puerto Rico, our program was selected as a standout for its leadership in intentionally and effectively serving Latino students. This is our fourth consecutive year of recognition by Excelencia. Since our founding over 26 years ago, Edu-Futuro has built a strong network of community support across Northern Virginia. Our staff understands the unique needs and family dynamics of our beneficiaries because the majority come from similar backgrounds: approximately 80% are fully bilingual, and 80% are immigrants or children of immigrants. This gives us a distinct advantage over other community-based organizations operating in this space, as we strive to create a welcoming environment that fosters trust, connections, and well-being for Latino and immigrant families in our community. Edu-Futuro is governed by a Board comprised of 11 diverse leaders from the business, government, and education communities. Our current Board demographics are 46% Latino, 36% White, 9% Asian, and 9% Multiracial; we are actively seeking to further diversify our Board membership to ensure we are as representative as possible of the community we serve. Board governance activities include strategic planning, public relations, budget oversight, and evaluation of the Executive Director. Our Executive Director, supported by the Deputy Director, oversees Edu-Futuro’s staff of 23 employees and 11 AmeriCorps members.