Builders Care Austin’s Board is excited to announce our next giving effort:
Beneficiary: Blackshear Elementary, a National Blue-Ribbon School, is a minority-majority school in an evolving historically low income area of East Austin
Amount Raised: $10,000.00
Purpose: Direct funding of the After-School Tutoring Program for struggling students
Builders Care, set an initial goal of $5,000 to pay for 75 students to get tutoring in an after-school tutoring program for one semester. In less than 36 hours, Builders Care Austin blew past that initial goal and raised the target to $10,000, which it then reached in only 48 hours from the initial ask.
As infill builders—including associated trades and professionals—we are well aware of the impact Austin’s growth is having on established neighborhoods in the City’s core. We understand that strong, well-resourced local schools are key to building and maintaining strong and vibrant communities. As part of our ongoing effort to give back to the communities in which we build, and understanding that demographic and economic change often follow growth, we look for ways to help mitigate the impact of those changes and build a better future for our City.
Because funding for after-hours public school programs is often tied to neighborhood median income, many schools have lost funding for crucial programs as household incomes rise even though schools continue to have dire needs. One such school heavily impacted by the funding loss is Blackshear Elementary Fine Arts Academy, and one of the programs most drastically affected is the After-school Tutoring Program. Working closely with the school’s principal, the Builders Care Austin Board determined that we could make a real difference in Blackshear students’ lives if we helped make up the funding shortfall for the program.
According to the Principal, the school was losing $10,000 in after-school tutoring funding this year due to shifts in the neighborhood median income. Without that money, money that is paid to Blackshear teachers to tutor students after hours, many students will not get the crucial help they need in Language Arts and Math in order to improve skills and meet success. With the $10,000 raised, the school can provide 75 students with tutoring for nearly two semesters!
Last year, during the first year of its existence, Builders Care Austin gave $10,000 to AISD to pay down student lunch debt. Builders Care is the charitable giving arm of the Austin Infill Coalition.