Seigle Foundation awards $193,000 in education grants

The Seigle Foundation recently announced the award of $193,000 in grants to the eight local organizations.

• Alignment Collaborative for Education, a collective impact organization of business and community leaders from 11 communities working in partnership with Elgin Area School District U-46 to deliver a qualified, future workforce eager to live and work within their communities

• Elgin Partnership for Early Learning, a nonprofit early childhood community collaboration that partners with organizations in the 11 communities within the 90 miles of U-46 boundaries.

• Elgin Public Museum of Natural History & Anthropology, offering exhibits and educational programs with natural history and cultural themes.

• Kids Above All Illinois, building better lives for more than 150,000 impoverished children and families in the Chicago area.

• Marklund, making everyday life possible for individuals with profound disabilities

• Summit School Inc., providing programs that build a solid foundation for educational and lifelong success

• The Literacy Connection, helping individuals acquire fundamental literacy skills and learn to read, write, speak and understand English.

• U-46 Educational Foundation, creating opportunities that expand student learning and well-being.

These donations support Education in the Elgin/Dundee area, the geographic focus of the foundation.

The foundation is committed to high-quality education opportunities that prepare young people in the Elgin and Dundee area for success in their lives and careers. This work may include (but is not limited to) early childhood education, K-12 programming, after school programs, and community colleges. Currently, 33% of Elgin's adult population have an Associate degree or higher, well below the statewide average of 51%, and 61% of students in the local district are low income, well above the statewide average of 48%.

Mark Seigle stated, "Having completed our third cycle of grant awards, the Seigle Foundation is excited to have received so many quality applications from within our Elgin/Dundee service area. More importantly, we are so impressed and grateful for the brilliant role these agencies play in our local communities."

For more information, visit SeigleFoundation.org.

The foundation operates four grant cycles per year, one for each focus area. The focus of the fall cycle will be housing; grant applications will be accepted between Oct. 1-31.