In 2006, three grant recipients each received $108,000.

Grant recipient:	The Children’s Wellness Center
Project:	Clinical assistant training program for young women or men in Del Valle to help them pursue health care careers

Patient examines Pat Budd, Executive Director. Photo taken by Angela Curtis, UT

The Children’s Wellness Center (CWC) is a school-based health clinic created in partnership in 1996 between Del Valle Independent School District and the University of Texas School of Nursing. It has since had more than 62,000 visits for sick children, preventative care, immunizations and home visits.

The Impact Austin grant will offer 12 young women or men in the Del Valle community the opportunity to obtain education and training toward a career in health care. Three students every six months will be recruited to attend an accredited clinical assistance program. Upon completion of classroom training, the students will complete a paid externship and then continue in employment for 20 hours per week for six months. These students will be assigned to a nurse practitioner during their externship and employment for mentorship, career counseling and personal support.

Initially, the project will impact 12 young women or men by providing training, professional development, mentoring and an accredited health-care job certification. Ultimately, the CWC will be able to increase its patient load by approximately 20 visits a day, 4,800 patients a year and serve the health-care needs of Del Valle at a much higher level. For more information, visit www.utexas.edu/nursing/html/cwc/.

Grant recipient:	EmanciPet, Inc.
Project:	Expansion of and improved access to spay/neuter services through additional surgical unit and two additional transport vehicles

EmanciPet mobile facility volunteer assists pets and owners

EmanciPet is the only nonprofit in Austin that is a 100 percent spay/neuter clinic providing low-cost surgeries from both mobile and stationary animal hospitals. Since 1999, over 35,000 animals have been sterilized at EmanciPet’s mobile hospital, while the organization has prevented births and subsequent unnecessary deaths of at least 537,500 dogs and cats at the stationary hospital.

EmaniciPet’s goal is to make Austin the nation’s second “no kill” city in the United States by 2008 by expanding its spay/neuter service capabilities. The Impact Austin grant will complete the outfitting of one additional surgical unit at their stationary hospital. It will also improve access to the facility and its services through the use of two additional transport vehicles that pick up and return pets to targeted neighborhoods. This will allow the organization to increase the number of spay/neuter surgeries it performs each year by 7,500, resulting in fewer euthanizations of animals. For more information, visit www.emancipet.org.

Literacy Austin volunteers teach community members to read

The mission of Literacy Austin is to provide basic literacy and English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction for adults, age 17 and older, who read below the fifth-grade level. Literacy Austin is now the largest provider of free adult basic literacy classes and ESL classes for adults in Central Texas.

The Impact Austin grant will provide a classroom build-out in their unused building space and hire a part-time off-site coordinator. These measures will enable the agency to respond more quickly to adult learners’ requests for services and reduce the waiting list. As a result, Literacy Austin will be able to tutor 49 percent more clients on site and meet the needs of more individuals in other areas of Austin. For more information, visit www.literacyaustin.org.