In 2011, five grant recipients each received $108,400 from Impact Austin.
Culture Grant Recipient: Paramount and State Theatres
Project: Literacy to Life

The
Paramount and State Theatres engage children throughout Central Texas,
cultivating a lifelong appreciation of the arts through their Education
& Outreach Program. The Impact Austin grant will fund the Literacy
to Life program, an eight week workshop in 3rd and 4th grade classrooms
that uses drama, storytelling, and writing exercises to help students
develop writing skills and celebrate the power of their imaginations. At
the end of the residency, an ensemble of professional actors honors the
creative voices of these students by bringing their writing to life in
an energetic production for the whole school to see.
For more details, visit:
www.austintheatre.org.
Education Grant Recipient: Austin Partners in Education
Project: 6th Grade Reading Classroom Coaching
Austin
Partners in Education (APIE)’s mission is to create and foster
effective community and school partnerships that provide all AISD
students preparation for college and career. With the Impact Austin
grant, the 6th Grade Reading Coaching Program will empower 6th grade
students to become stronger, independent readers through Reading
Classroom Coaching. Classroom Coaches share a love of reading with
students, increasing fluency and comprehension for increased learning
outcomes. In a new program, Reading Stars, students will work weekly
with their Classroom Coach to perfect their reading and will then have
the opportunity to star in their own book-on-tape. This program will
impact 500 6th graders at Burnet or Pearce Middle schools that are
reading below grade level.
For more details, visit:
www.austinpartners.org.
Environment Grant Recipient: Camp Fire USA Balcones Council
Project: Camp Fire Kids Unplugged
Camp Fire USA Balcones Council builds caring, confident youth and future
leaders, developing the whole child and strengthening the family
through diverse service-learning programs. The grant from Impact Austin
will enable the Balcones Council to establish ten Camp Fire Kids
Unplugged clubs in seven Del Valle elementary schools, connecting
house-restricted, underprivileged children and their families with
nature. Eighty participating families will experience fun outdoor
recreational activities led by nature experts and club mentors. The
families will be trained in safety procedures and nature preservation,
and each club will complete an annual environmental stewardship project.
For more details, visit:
www.campfireusabalcones.org.
Family Grant Recipient: Texas Advocacy Project
Project: Emergency Protective Order Project

Texas
Advocacy Project is a statewide, nonprofit organization that provides
free legal services to victims of domestic violence and is committed to
ending violence in the home because no child should ever have to watch
one parent abuse the other. The grant provided by Impact Austin will
fund the Emergency Protective Order Program, which provides victims of
domestic violence with access to legal advice and assistance in
obtaining protective orders during the critical period immediately after
an abuser's arrest and during the following weeks as they make their
transition to permanent safety.
For more details, visit:
www.texasadvocacyproject.org.
Health and Wellness Grant Recipient: Austin Child Guidance Center
Project: Children’s Mental Health Expansion Initiative
Austin
Child Guidance Center offers mental health treatment for children
through early intervention, diagnosis and treatment. Impact Austin’s
grant will aid the Children’s Mental Health Expansion Initiative, which
will allow the organization to hire two new therapists to provide
individual, family and group therapy, parenting classes and
psychological assessments for Central Texas children. This will
increase the number of children and families served at the center by
67%. These therapists will complete a process to qualify for
reimbursement for their services from private insurance companies and
government agencies, making this one-time investment self-sustaining.
For more details, visit:
www.austinchildguidance.org.