‘Full ride’ for Parent University

Parenting information ?program awarded $100,000 Impact grant|

Call it: Parent’s U.

That could become the casual name of the Sonoma Valley Parent University, a new parenting program that last week became the lucky beneficiary of a $100,000 grant from Impact100 Sonoma.

Impact100, the 6-year-old organization dedicated to recruiting women into local philanthropy, awarded the grant May 30, when members gathered at the Sonoma Veterans Memorial Auditorium to hear presentations from Impact $100,000 Grant finalists.

In the end, Parent University presenters swayed the Impact100 membership with their plans to expand its 2014 pilot program - a project of On the Move – in which, according to an Impact100 statement, five parent leaders were recruited to engage parents at El Verano Preschool in classes that “increased their skills and confidence – allowing them to support their children’s academic success.” Classes ranged from learning how to navigate the school system and understand test scores to family wellness, English as a second language, and becoming a “parent leader.” With the Impact grant, program officials say they will expand its programming on both El Verano and Sassarini elementary campuses to support more than 300 parents of children from preschool through fifth grade.

This year, 263 women joined Impact100 Sonoma, providing a total of $263,000 to be awarded to local nonprofits. In addition to Sonoma Valley Parent University, $20,000 was awarded to the other two finalists for the $100,000 grant: 10,000 Degrees for its 10,000 Degrees Institute Sonoma Valley, and Audubon Canyon Ranch for its Summer Science Learning for Underserved Youth at the Bouverie Preserve. Not only that, but Impact100 Sonoma awarded the remaining funds, totaling $123,000, in smaller “community grants” to the following nonprofit organizations:

Becoming Independent will receive $15,000 to purchase a new vehicle to transport clients with developmental disabilities to work and volunteer sites.

Ceres Community Project will receive $15,000 for a planning grant with Sonoma Valley organizations to address nutritional needs for patients after they have been released from a hospital stay.

La Luz will receive $15,000 to offer computer literacy workshops and employment counseling at El Verano Community School for low-income Latino adults.

Jack London Park Partners will receive $15,000 to organize volunteers in invasive species removal in the park and to involve at-risk youth in specific restoration projects.

Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance will receive $15,000 to purchase Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) learning tools for their mentees.

Community Matters will receive $15,000 to institutionalize the Safe School Ambassador program (an early-intervention program focusing on communication and conflict resolution) at Adele Harrison and Altimira middle schools.

Verity will receive $15,000 for the Youth Empowerment and Support project at Sonoma Valley schools to aid students in preventing sexual violence.

4Paws Learning and Wellness Center will receive $2,200 to increase the number of Sonoma Valley canine social therapy teams that provide comfort to healthcare patients and assist children struggling with reading.

Arts Guild will receive $15,000 to support a mobile arts education program at four elementary schools for 1,448 Sonoma Valley K-5 students.

Pets Lifeline will receive $800 for structural enhancements to their kennels and dog play area.

For more information about Impact100, check out www.impact100sonoma.org or call 939-5007.

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