Austin FC and Q2 Announce Inaugural Q-mmunity Gives Program Grant Recipients
December 13, 2021 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Austin FC News Release
Austin, TEXAS - Austin FC and Q2 Holdings Inc. announced on Monday this year's three (3) recipients of the new Q-mmunity Gives grant program. Local nonprofits Con Mi MADRE, Urban Roots, and Science Mill will each receive a $50,000 grant to focus on the advancement of underrepresented communities through the following impact areas: education, job skills and readiness, and health and wellness.
"Austin FC is excited to announce the Q-mmunity Gives program's first-ever grant recipients," said Austin FC President Andy Loughnane. "As part of the Club's commitment to the nonprofit community, we are honored to align with Austin FC founding partner Q2 to support three local organizations who represent increasing equity through inclusion."
When Con Mi MADRE was founded in 1992, statistics showed that Latina babies had less than a one (1) percent chance of graduating from college. Since then, the organization's mission has focused on empowering young Latinas and their mothers through education and support services that increase preparedness, participation and success in post-secondary education.
"Support from the Q-mmunity Gives grant is vital to increasing the number of students and parents Con Mi MADRE can serve," said Con Mi MADRE Executive Director Johanna Moya Fábregas. "We can further our mission of helping young Latinas graduate from high school, enroll in college and successfully earn a college degree, thereby breaking the generational cycles of poverty and its social determinants."
Urban Roots cultivates leadership skills through food and farming to transform the lives of young people. The organization's farm-based programs include the Farm Internship Program (14-17 years old) and Farm Leadership Fellowship (18-23 years old), which provide participants with valuable social and emotional development skills and the opportunity to grow and harvest hundreds of pounds of vegetables that are donated to hunger relief partners.
"The Q-mmunity Gives grant will allow Urban Roots to equip youth with the knowledge and skills to grow thousands of pounds of nutrient-dense vegetables that will be donated to those in our community experiencing food insecurity," said Urban Roots Executive Director Frances Deviney. "But the impact doesn't stop there. This grant also funds our efforts to provide youth with meaningful social-emotional learning opportunities as they develop confidence in who they are and how their gifts can empower them to be change-makers in their community and in the world. Urban Roots is so grateful for this support!"
The Science Mill opened in 2015 in Johnson City, Texas, as a highly interactive, hands-on science museum focused on Central and South Texas students who have traditionally been underrepresented in the STEM field. The museum plays an important role in creating new strategies for student engagement in STEM careers while growing the number of underrepresented students in Texas who will become the next generation of STEM leaders in our communities.
"The Q-mmunity Gives grant will allow the Science Mill to bring its transformative STEM programs to new places and even more students across Texas," said Science Mill Founder Bonnie Baskin. "More than 60 percent of Texas students live in economically disadvantaged communities, with little or no access to STEM programs. The Q-mmunity Gives grant accelerates our efforts to reach those students who are most in need of the confidence and encouragement to succeed in STEM and become the entrepreneurial and critical thinkers in a 21st-century skilled workforce."
"We are excited to support Con Mi MADRE, Urban Roots and Science Mill to help them continue to positively impact and change lives in our community," said Matt Flake, CEO for Q2. "At Q2, our mission is to build strong and diverse communities by strengthening their financial institutions, and through the annual Q-mmunity Gives grant program, in partnership with Austin FC, we want to empower organizations that are making a difference in our Central Texas community."
The three (3) grants will contribute directly to aiding each organization in its respective mission related to promoting equity and inclusion in central Texas. The Q-mmunity Gives program, funded and presented by Austin FC and Q2, will award the grant annually moving forward.
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