This weekend’s POOR BOX Contributions go to Thread
Thread enrolls 9th grade students in Baltimore who rank in the lowest 25% of their class and face an abundance of challenges outside of the classroom. Students remain in Thread for 10 years, surrounded by a group of up to 5 volunteers—a Thread Family–that provides the student with continuous support and increased access to community resources while deeply enriching the lives of committed volunteers. Once enrolled, Thread commits to never giving up on a single student – we’ve retained 100% of students for 14 years – and our students consistently defy the odds.
87% have graduated from high school within six years. And for those who have been in Thread for a decade, 83% have received a college degree or completed a certificate program. To get a sense of how extraordinary these achievements are, Baltimore freshmen students with GPAs below 1.0 have a four-year high school graduation rate of only 6%.
Here are a few quick videos and articles about Thread
- Learn more in this brief video
- Co-founder and CEO, Sarah Hemminger’s TEDx talk provides an overview of our approach
- Thread coverage in the NY Times: Part I, Part II, and Part III
To contribute, the Poor Boxes are located in the Chapel of Grace and in the Narthex of the church at the top of both side stairs. – Thank you for your kind generosity