Firewall Centers receives $50,000 grant from The Jim Moran Foundation to expand its program at Crystal Lake Middle School

DAVIE, Fla. (September 29, 2015) – Firewall Centers was awarded a generous $50,000 grant from The Jim Moran Foundation to double the number of students served to 40 at Crystal Lake Middle School.

Firewall’s THINK Leadership program at Crystal Lake provides at-risk students with after-school mentoring, tutoring and leadership development. Daily, these students are given a safe and structured environment, practical academic help and mentors who instill positive values to guide their decision-making. As a result, they begin to take ownership over every area of their lives and gain confidence in their abilities to reach their goals.

“With the many challenges facing our youth today, it’s so important to reach out and provide them with positive role models and engaging educational experiences,” Jan Moran, chairman and president of The Jim Moran Foundation, said. “We are happy to partner with Firewall Centers to help prepare these students for success in school and life.”

“As we work with parents and schools to impact underserved students, we believe that Firewall’s approach of walking through life with students ultimately helps them see that with the right help and their own hard work, they can break the cycle of poverty and reach their greatest potential,” Executive Director Andy Fernandez said, “And this new partnership with The Jim Moran Foundation will allow us to significantly grow our impact in Broward County, as we provide these essential services to so many more students.”

Through this grant as well as additional support from like-minded donors, Firewall will be able to transform the lives of more than 400 students at eight locations during the 2015-2016 school year.

 

About The Jim Moran Foundation

Founded by automotive pioneer Jim Moran, the mission of The Jim Moran Foundation is to improve the quality of life for the youth and families of Florida through the support of innovative programs and opportunities that meet the ever-changing needs of the community. The Foundation has invested nearly $60 million in education, elder care, family strengthening, after school and youth transitional living initiatives since its inception in 2000 – with efforts currently focused in Broward, Palm Beach and Duval counties. Through a long-term Grant Agreement, The Foundation’s significant funders are JM Family Enterprises, Inc., and its subsidiaries, including Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC. It is located at 100 Jim Moran Blvd., Deerfield Beach, Fla. 33442. To learn more, visitwww.jimmoranfoundation.org or call (954) 429-2122.

 

 

Walmart supports expansion of Firewall Centers programs with $10,000 grant

DAVIE, Fla. (Sept. 16th, 2015) – The local Walmart Stores in Broward County along with the Walmart Foundation granted Firewall Centers with $10,000 to support Firewall’s T.H.I.N.K. Leadership program, which equips low-income students with the educational means to rise and become leaders in their communities.

The grant was provided through a partnership of 14 Broward County Walmart stores that wanted to make an impact in the neighborhoods where they live and work. “At Walmart, we operate globally but give back locally.  We encourage our stores to partner with organizations like Firewall to provide support to the underserved in our communities,” said Walmart Market Manager, Evie Chitty.

The funds will be used to provide top-quality mentors who work with students each day after school to help them improve their grades and overall school performance. Firewall will also utilize the funds to provide its unique curriculum to students, which is designed to teach them leadership and service principles.

Additionally, Firewall will be able to provide the technology access and school supplies necessary for students to complete their homework assignments and projects as well as for mentors to track student progress.

With Walmart’s help, Firewall is able to continue changing the futures of at-risk South Florida students by providing them with the practical academic help, life skills, and positive role models they need to not only survive, but thrive.

To find out more about what the Walmart Foundation is doing to support our community, visit http://foundation.walmart.com/.

September 2015 Newsletter

The 2015-2016 school year is officially in full swing, and we are off to a great start! Our mentors have had a chance to get to know the kids they will be working with for the year. They are thrilled to see how enthusiastic their kids have been to excel in school, and we can’t wait to see how they continue to improve. What makes these changes take root in their lives is the way our mentors form long-lasting relationships with their students.

Center Spotlight: Crystal Lake Middle School

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Our first featured center for this school year is Crystal Lake. The center serves 52 students with 17 returning from last year. It’s incredible to see how each center develops its own unique personality during the school year. Crystal Lake’s area director, Wolkenzye, said “the Crystal Lake center is a really awesome group of kids.” The kids are not only respectful, but they are highly motivated to do their homework and often end up competing against each other to see who finishes first.

Aaliyah Wright

Aaliyah

This is Aaliyah. She just started her second year at Firewalland is in seventh grade. She is a shining example through her academics and her respect for her mentors. When she started t Firewall, her grades tended to go up and down, but now her grades are consistently high. Her site supervisor, Whitney, said “she is always willing to listen and help out the mentors and other students with their work.”

Youseline Sept.

Youseline

Meet Youseline. She is a first-year mentor at our Crystal Lake center, and she is studying human development and family studies at Nova in hopes of becoming a teacher. The thing she loves most about being a mentor is that it allows her to counteract the negativity that her students are exposed to on a daily basis. Being a mentor lets her be a positive role model for her students and give them hope for the future.


Firewall Upgrades Technologytechnology

For this school year, we now provide each of our mentors with a tablet equipped with our very own app that allows the mentors to streamline the process of tracking student grades and progress. This allows our mentors to spend more time focusing on their students, rather than on filling out paperwork. Another improvement is the addition of fingerprint technology at each of our centers, which allows us to speed up the check-in and check-out process and better ensure the students’ safety.