TULSA, Okla. — We’re shining the spotlight on a local organization that’s working to reach 15,000 more Tulsa students and help improve their lives.
Impact Tulsa’s executive director says a $3.6 million grant will help them do just that.
Inside the Impact Tulsa office, Executive Director Ashley Philippsen is hard at work.
“We believe that opportunity and access should be afforded to all young people in Tulsa County,” said Ashley Philippsen.
With that goal in mind, Philippsen says a $3.6 million grant from StiveTogether will help them place 15,000 more Tulsa kids on a path to economic mobility by 2030.
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“This work is critical because when we talk about Tulsa being a world-class city, and we think about our future, we can’t wait until a student is out of school to think through how do we get them ready for the workforce,” said Philippsen.
That path to economic mobility is lined with dozens of schools and organizations that help them achieve their goals. Groups like Reading Partners and their partnership with My Brother’s Keeper for the Books in Barbershops initiative.
“They have their little library there and every time they read when they come in whether they’re waiting for their haircut or they’re sitting in the chair getting their haircut they get little prizes for doing that,” said Olivia Martin.
2 News was there when the program launched this spring.
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Olivia Martin, executive director of Reading Partners Tulsa, says the Books in Barbershops program helps promote literacy and learning specifically for young boys of color.
“They really help support our information about where we are most needed to serve in what schools and communities and why and what are the challenges in those particular school communities,” said Martin.
Impact Tulsa works with partners to improve reading scores, graduation rates, and other outcomes, and it says this grant will make a huge difference in its work.
“The Transform Impact grant from Strive Together is a pivotal moment in Impact Tulsa’s history and our future,” said Philippsen.
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