OUR FUTURE

Our vision for the future is a Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club that assists young people in realizing and achieving their full potential for growth and development, and in attaining the skills necessary to live and succeed in a complex modern world.  We know that there are serious challenges affecting young people today.  For example, in our own local community:

 

• A 2012 report by the Annenberg Institute for School Reform found that 90% of 5 Bronx neighborhoods where Kips Bay operates are not prepared for college-level work by the end of high school.

• On New York State standardized test in 2013, only 26.4% of 3rd-8th grade students met the proficiency standards in English Language Arts (ELA).  In School District 8, where the majority of Kips Bay members are students, the figure attaining proficiency drops to 15.85%.

• Nationally, 15% of school-age children are obese, as reported by the United States Surgeon General.  Nearby Jacobi Medical Centerin the Bronx, reports that of 50,000 visits to the pediatric clinic, 50% of patients are obese.

• In 2010, the U.S. Census reported that the Bronx is the most diverse county in the United States.

 

Based on the challenges listed above, we know that we need to be doing even more to address our community’s changing needs.  We will strengthen and increase high school, vocational, and college preparatory programming with activities in career awareness and mentoring, college readiness and visits, and SAT preparation. 

 

We know from our outcome surveys that membership in Kips Bay correlates strongly with success in school and that students in our local community need our help to prepare them for high school and beyond.  We will work to reach more youngsters and bolster educational programming in the vital areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).  We recently initiated nutrition education and obesity prevention programs. We will continue to expand and enhance this important facet of our programming.

 

Endowment growth is needed to provide the financial stability to ensure program continuation, proper maintenance and enhancement of our facilities, and the ability to carry out multi-year initiatives.  We strive to strengthen our endowment to ensure support for programming of the highest quality in perpetuity in state-of-the-art facilities, allowing us to serve our community for our next 100 years. These actions will support key improvements we hope to make to our facilities, ensuring that our members have access to the best possible athletic and recreational opportunities.

 

We seek to raise funds to address these key priorities.  We undertake these vital projects to better offer our members first-rate facilities and programs to prepare them for all stages of life and their education.  The breakdown of our fundraising goal is as follows:

 

• Increased Endowment

  • Cost: $7,000,000

• New educational programming

  • Cost: $1,500,000

• Enhanced Athletic Facilities

  • Cost: $1,500,000

 

We have borne witness to the power of philanthropy in action over our first century of service.  From our initial founding, we have worked to clean up a troubled neighborhood and provide its youngest citizens with opportunities from across the board. We have been the beneficiary of many of New York’s most committed philanthropists, and we can continue to impact communities in the Bronx for another 100 years with the help of our friends, supporters, and all concerned citizens. 

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