The Amarillo Area Foundation is committed to improving the quality of life in the Texas Panhandle through a comprehensive cradle-to-career education strategy. Our approach involves strategic grantmaking, fostering collaborative partnerships across sectors, and empowering the voices of young individuals.
Beginning with a focus on early learning, we aim to enhance access to quality early childhood education, literacy tools, and innovative two-generation approaches. Our goal is to witness a significant improvement in Kindergarten readiness and third-grade reading scores. As students progress towards college and career readiness, the Amarillo Area Foundation is dedicated to supporting them through investments in career counseling, mentorship programs, apprenticeships, and job shadowing. We are also committed to expanding access to work-based learning opportunities throughout the Texas Panhandle, particularly in rural areas.
As students transition beyond high school or seek to re-engage with education and the workforce, the Foundation strives to increase accessibility and completion of post-secondary credentials of value. Collaborating with local partners, we will invest in programs offering comprehensive support services for post-secondary students including tutoring, mentoring, and other wraparound services for both traditional and non-traditional students. Additionally, the Foundation will continue to offer over a million dollars a year in scholarships to Panhandle students.
In line with our commitment to innovation, the Texas Panhandle Opportunity Youth Collaborative, led by the Amarillo Area Foundation with support from the Aspen Institute, is dedicated to serving Opportunity Youth (ages 16-24) in the region. Through an innovative and relationship-based approach, this collaborative seeks to elevate and empower young individuals who are disconnected from education and the workforce in the Texas Panhandle.
The ultimate objective of the Foundation’s Education strategy is to improve quality of life by empowering individuals to secure post-secondary credentials of value leading to family-sustaining wages and lives filled with freely chosen opportunities.
