Grantees

To expland current school readiness by providing every Westminster preschooler with a starter library of exceptional children's books.

Expand existing afterschool program to serve kindergartners and high risk students. Adding a K-2 group will allow them to accommodate additional students in grades 1-6 currently on the wait list.

To assist DREAM in providing long-lasting mentoring relationships between Bennington College students and children living in the Willowbrook Housing Community in Bennington, VT

They will work in partnership with Windham County Farm to School to increase the quality of early childhood education programs by engaging licensed centers and registered home providers in gardening activities, curriculum and field trips related to good nutrition, farms and food systems.

Bookmobile in the Windham County area.

For nearly 50 years Windsor County Mentors has provided mentoring relationships for Windsor County children and youth. Through our school-based and community-based one- on-one mentoring programs, WCM matches a caring adult with an at-risk youth. At the very heart of mentoring is the assurance that a young person will have someone who cares about them. Someone they can rely on to help them deal with day-to-day challenges and who makes them feel like they matter. Research on the impact of mentoring confirms that quality mentoring relationships fundamentally change the direction of a young person's life for the better. We are planning to double the number of mentoring pairs under our program.

Summer program serving children pre-K through fifth grade. The program provides recreational and enrichment experiences for the children involved within their own community. Programming takes place at the local elementary/middle school and runs for four

The Winooski Above the Influence (ATI) group helps youth to live above the negative influences in their life. ATI supports youth in making healthy choices and empowers them to make a difference in their community. Our hope with this program is for youth to not only make their own well-informed decisions, but to have them help change norms and policies around substance use in the greater community. To accomplish this, students learn science-based facts about substances and substance use, as well as practice public-speaking, leadership, and advocacy skills in a weekly after school group for 5-8th grade students. ATI students also use these skills and engage in outreach events to help address substance abuse within Winooski.