2017 Final Four TCCS Secondary Beneficiaries

At our May 3, 2017 Club lunch meeting, the membership will be voting on the 2017 Final Four TCCS Secondary Beneficiaries.  They are as follows:

The Caregiver Training Institute was founded to address the increasing need for professional certified caregivers in our community to attend to rapidly growing numbers of seniors and disabled individuals in our community.  There are relatively few programs in Arizona that can provide required training and certification for these entry level roles.   A grant from the Rotary Club of Tucson Foundation would support approximately 25 students in their training by funding program materials and supplies necessary for practicums, clinicals and job searching; will provide an Android Tablet and eBooks to complete assignments since most have no access to computers; and will partially cover the cost of instructor fees, uniforms, and medical supplies such as pressure cuffs and stethoscopes.

 

GAP Ministries provides rehabilitative programs to address those recovering from drug abuse and homelessness through a Culinary Training Program designed to educate, empower, and rehabilitate at-risk, vulnerable youth and adults who desire to obtain living wage jobs in the culinary industry.  100% of participants are ex-convicts, ex-drug addicts and most are survivors of physical and sexual abuse.  These students are individuals whose ability to thrive has been greatly diminished since early childhood.  A second year Rotary Club Foundation grant for GAP would help expand this program so that more of these individuals can acquire culinary skills and receive a national certification through ServSafe.  These students will also give back during their training by preparing over 200 meals daily for low-income elementary-age children in nine Title I schools in Pima County. 

 

JTED offers advanced technical education programs across its 13 member districts.  JTED programs offer cutting-edge technology, relevant hands-on experiences, and a  rigorous curriculum.  JTED currently serves over 14,000 students in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs throughout Pima County.  The support of the RCOT Foundation over this past school year has made a difference in over one hundred students' participation and certification in JTED program areas who could not otherwise afford this education.  Grant funds from the Rotary Club of Tucson Foundation this year would allow the program to grow and be sustained. Funding will support work uniforms, fees, and needed supplies to 50 students so that they can complete their JTED programs.  It would also assist students in completing an industry certification and assist in the cost of a career and college specialist in their academic challenges. 

 

Arizona currently ranks as 6th in the nation in poverty.  In its 100th anniversary year, the YWCA responded to this crisis by creating the Women's Impact Fund to reduce the number of working women who still live in poverty and to increase access to capital for entrepreneurs.  The YWCA is a leading provider of bilingual, culturally competent workforce readiness, leadership development, and business training programs for more than 2,000 women each year.  The Women's Impact Fund seeks to become a primary lender for women and immigrant entrepreneurs in Arizona, and a source of capital to invest in programs and businesses that drive economic development in Pima County.  A grant from the Rotary Club of Tucson would provide job training for low income women, immigrants and entrepreneurs and will help to establish capital investment through the Women's Impact Fund.