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$1.8M awarded to middle school out-of-school time programs

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$1.8M awarded to middle school out-of-school time programs

By Tiyana Glenn Posted: Jul 16, 2025

The New York Life Foundation and the Afterschool Alliance are pleased to announce the 2025 Aim High grant recipients. Now in its ninth year, the Aim High grant has provided a total of $13.35 million dollars to equip afterschool, summer and expanded learning programs with the resources needed to help middle school students make a strong transition to high school. This year, $1.8 million in grants were awarded to 30 youth development organizations across the country.

Of the 30 grants awards, 15 were awarded to help out-of-school time programs implement strategies to improve educational attainment by reducing school absences and chronic absenteeism. The remaining grants will provide general operating support to programs that help students successfully transition from 8th to 9th grade.

2025 Aim High grant winners:

The following 15 organizations were awarded two-year grants of $100,000 to implement strategies to improve educational attainment by reducing school absences and chronic absenteeism:

  • Boys & Girls Clubs of the Colorado River, Bullhead City, Arizona
  • Life Skills for Youth, Little Rock, Arkansas
  • Improve Your Tomorrow, Sacramento, California
  • GOODProjects, Inc., Washington, District of Columbia
  • Life Pieces To Masterpieces, Washington, District of Columbia
  • Artist ReEnvisioning Tomorrow Inc (ART Inc), Peoria, Illinois
  • LEAP for Education, Salem, Massachusetts
  • Bronx Lacrosse, Bronx, New York
  • Children Of Promise, NYC, Brooklyn, New York
  • Maspeth Town Hall, Inc., Maspeth, New York
  • OpenDoors Asheville, Asheville, North Carolina
  • Community Connect Center, Fargo, North Dakota
  • African Youth & Community Organization, Portland, Oregon
  • Boys & Girls Clubs of the Lakelands Region, Greenwood, South Carolina
  • West River Foundation, Sturgis, South Dakota

The following 15 organizations were awarded one-year grants of $20,000 to help students transition to the 9th grade:

  • Breakthrough Silicon Valley, San Jose, California
  • Girl Power Rocks, Inc., Miami, Florida
  • Close Ties Leadership Program, Atlanta, Georgia
  • Jared’s Heart of Success, Atlanta, Georgia
  • High Jump, Chicago, Illinois
  • Project: VISION, Inc., Chicago, Illinois
  • Waukegan to College, Waukegan, Illinois
  • Wisdom Projects, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland
  • So What Else, Inc., Rockville, Maryland
  • Project Dream, Inc., Detroit, Michigan
  • Centro De Cultura Arte Trabajo Y Educacion, Norristown, Pennsylvania
  • Girls Inc. of Greater Philadelphia & Southern New Jersey, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Girls Inc. of TN Valley, Oak Ridge, Tennessee
  • Camp Fire First Texas, Fort Worth, Texas
  • PAIR: Partnership for the Advancement and Immersion of Refugees, Houston, Texas

Congratulations to the 2025 New York Life Aim High recipients!

Inspired by New York Life’s tradition of service and humanity, the New York Life Foundation has, since its founding in 1979, provided over $440 million in charitable contributions to national and local nonprofit organizations. To learn more about the New York Life Foundation, or the Aim High grant, visit afterschoolalliance.org/awards.cfm, or email us at aimhigh@afterschoolalliance.org.

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