Boston, MA, March 5, 2015 – The Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation Corp., a nonprofit, tax-exempt entity established by attorneys from the law firm of Brown Rudnick LLP, awarded a Community Grant to STOKED Mentoring, Inc. to support the “Stoked for Success” after-school program for high school students in Brooklyn, New York. The grant will help purchase the materials needed for a student skateboard building project throughout the year.
Stoked for Success combines after-school enrichment with weekend action sports mentoring to cultivate college/career readiness for high schools students. “Students spend the school year building an original skateboard by hand with no need for power tools or heavy machinery,” explains Hannah Tall, STOKED Program Manager. “The program, offered twice a week, teaches science and math concepts, as well as project planning and management, while the students build a skateboard. Throughout the process, students learn persistence, patience, communication and collaboration skills.”
“We weave academic themes into the program as students learn about the physics of skateboarding, and skateboard function and design,” continues Tall. “Students spend the latter half of the year, learning about various art mediums so they can apply a design to their skateboard. At the end of the year, they display their boards at an art show which includes an essay about what the board building process.”
Al Wallis, Executive Director of the Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation Corp, said, “We are excited to support innovative educational programs, such as Stoked for Success, that support youth of under-served demographic backgrounds. These activities can help students build lasting relationships with volunteer mentors and increase students’ resiliency and self-reliance while building a strong sense of community.”
Created to support front-line educators who often do not have a voice in funding decisions, the Community Grants subsidize small, concrete projects, which will improve inner-city education within Boston, Hartford, London, Orange County, Providence, New York, or Washington DC within the coming year. The Foundation will generally consider grant applications monthly and award grants in an amount totaling not more than $2000 in any one month. The grant applications and an explanation of the program can be found here.
About Brown Rudnick LLP
Brown Rudnick, an international law firm with offices in the United States and Europe, represents clients from around the world in high-stakes litigation, international arbitration and complex business transactions. Clients include public and private corporations, multinational Fortune 100 businesses and start-up enterprises. The Firm also represents investors, as well as official and ad hoc creditors’ committees in today’s largest corporate restructurings, both domestically and abroad. Founded more than 60 years ago, Brown Rudnick has over 230 lawyers providing advice and services across key areas of the law. Beyond the United States, the Firm regularly serves clients in Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. With its Brown Rudnick Center for the Public Interest, the Firm has created an innovative model combining its pro bono, charitable giving and community volunteer efforts.
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