The Katie Gruenheck Fund for College Completion
KIPP DC is honored to establish The Katie Gruenheck Fund for College Completion. Katie Gruenheck’s family has chosen to honor her memory by establishing a fund in her name that would pursue a mission that was close to her heart. Katie’s own experience and the experience of a number of students whom Katie tried to help pursue a college career taught her that low-income, first-generation college students suffer serious disadvantages in coping with the college experience. They lack the support systems that students with a family history of college attendance depend on. Without those support systems, the college experience presents students with an array of challenges inside and outside the classroom that can be daunting. Katie felt strongly that building such support systems for students who lack them is critical to the ability of those students to succeed in college. The Katie Gruenheck Fund, which will work with and through KIPP DC’s KIPP Through College program, is intended to advance that objective.
The Katie Gruenheck Fund will help support the most underserved students in the District of Columbia by providing access to resources and guidance that help make college completion a reality for low-income, first-generation college students. This year, The Fund will help 64 high school seniors and another 113 alumni currently in college. For members of the high school class of 2012, support from The Fund will include monthly check-ins with a College Transition Advisor, financial aid and scholarship counseling, networking opportunities with other KIPP alumni, and help during the fall transition to a college campus. For students currently in college, The Fund will help a team of KIPP Through College advisors connect regularly with alumni and provide assistance with course scheduling, the on-campus housing system, financial aid resources, scholarships, tutoring and more. Through frequent communication and on-campus visits, the team will also help each alumnus build self-awareness and self-advocacy skills that will provide an important foundation for alumni to be successful in college and life. Since the majority of alumni will be the first in their families to attend college, having an advocate throughout the college experience empowers them to overcome barriers, move towards college graduation, and pursue careers of their choice.
Each year, a new class of KIPP DC seniors will graduate from high school and join the alumni already in college in taking on the challenges of the college experience. Against the odds, they will continue on their journey to and through college and, more importantly, into a life of options and opportunity. Because of the generosity of The Katie Gruenheck Fund for College Completion, hundreds of underserved students from the District of Columbia will receive life-changing support that will take each student one step closer to the dream of a college degree. To make a donation to The Katie Gruenheck Fund for College Completion, please determine your preferred gift type and follow the steps below:
1. Check. Please make checks payable to KIPP DC and indicate The Katie Gruenheck Fund in the memo line. It is helpful to also include a letter with your contribution indicating your gift is to be restricted to The Fund. Checks can be mailed to KIPP DC, c/o Rachel Wandell, 1003 K Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20001.
2. Credit Card. To make a credit card donation, please visit www.kippdc.org/donate. Check “in memory of” under the Dedication section and indicate The Katie Gruenheck Fund in the line below the dedication.
3. Gift of Stock. KIPP DC will also accept gifts of stock, which will be sold immediately upon transfer. To make a gift of stock, contact Rachel Wandell rachel.wandell@kippdc.org or 202-223-4505 for account information.
To make an online donation, click here.
If you have any questions about The Katie Gruenheck Fund, please contact Rachel Wandell at rachel.wandell@kippdc.org or 202-223-4505.
