The Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Indiana Corridor is one of just five organizations statewide receiving support through the Indiana Department of Education’s “Expanding What Works” grant.
The funding aims to deliver high-quality reading and math programming to students with the greatest academic needs. Over 5,500 students across Indiana will be served through the initiative this summer.
CEO Duane Wilson said the grant reflects the organization’s growing role in education, both academically and emotionally.
“We are well known, but not known well,” Wilson said. “And I think an area we are really growing in, and being known well for, is being the academic support for our students. But not only academically, but socially and emotionally as well.”
The Boys & Girls Club will serve students not only in South Bend, but also in Monticello, Clinton County, Pulaski County, White County and Cass County. The program relies on a partnership with the Lavinia Group, which provides curriculum, teacher support, and assessment tools.
Wilson said the funding is especially timely, with Indiana now requiring third graders to pass the IREAD-3 exam in order to advance to fourth grade.
“We believe if we do great work, it will improve our community, and this community deserves a great Boys & Girls Club,” he said.
The Expanding What Works grant is funded through Indiana’s biennial budget and supports the continued spread of the successful Indy Summer Learning Labs model.
