Rhonda Morin, director of communications
360-992-2705; rmorin@clark.edu
www.clarkcollegefoundation.org
Community
Foundation for Southwest Washington grant sets financial clarity for Clark College
students
$30,000 grant to break generational cycles of
poverty
VANCOUVER, Wash. — Clark College Foundation received a
grant from the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington to assist in breaking
the cycle of intergenerational poverty in the region.
The $30,000 grant is designated for a full-time
financial literacy coach within Clark College’s Career
Services department.
“This financial literacy
coach will provide much-needed, one-on-one assistance to many of Clark’s most
vulnerable students to help them set practical and achievable financial goals
so they can succeed in college,” said Lisa Gibert, president/CEO, Clark College
Foundation. “We are grateful to the Community Foundation for Southwest
Washington’s leadership in helping us serve the highest need families in our
region.”
“Our grants committee saw
this proposal as an opportunity to support students who are striving for a
better life through higher education,” said Jennifer Rhoads, president of the
Community Foundation. “On behalf of our many supporters, we are honored to
strengthen the efforts of our local community college as they work to ensure
that every student is able to achieve their dream of a college degree.”
The grant provides the
funding to upgrade an existing Career Services position from part-time to
full-time. The individual will conduct workshops and classroom presentations
focusing on topics such as budgets, balancing a checkbook, understanding credit
cards, credit scores and loan repayment, according to Edie Blakley, director of
Career and Veteran Services. Working with students to teach them financial
wellness strategies will result in self-sufficiency and increase the likelihood
that they will attain their economic, education and career goals.
The coach will positively
impact significant numbers of vulnerable Clark students, 54 percent of whom are
from families below the poverty level and 60 percent are unemployed and/or on
public assistance. Moreover, nearly three-quarters of Clark students are the first
generation in their families to attend college.
Clark College’s Career
Services offers resources and strategies for choosing a college major
and developing career plans, creating job search materials, finding internships
and full-time jobs, and making successful career transitions.
Clark
College Foundation is a
nonprofit organization that serves as the fundraising partner of Clark College in support of student learning and
program excellence. Nationally recognized for excellence in fundraising and communications,
the foundation is the 2015
gold winner for
its campaign fundraising communications by the Council for Advancement and
Support of Education (CASE) for District VIII.
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