NORFOLK, Va. — A nonprofit that serves hundreds of kids in Hampton Roads is facing a funding crisis weeks before its summer program is set to begin.
Horizons Hampton Roads had been expecting to receive a two-year $250,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency.
"We had just had a meeting with them less than two weeks ago and everything was approved and they asked us for our direct deposit information so we thought everything was a go and last week we got a letter that said it was terminated," said Dr. Velvet Smith, executive director of Horizons Hampton Roads.
Smith tells News 3 that the nonprofit, which is supported by individual and corporate donations as well as grants, planned to use the funding for an academic initiative.
"It was an academic grant for the students to really work in the community, especially with the Chesapeake Bay watershed," she added.
Founded to help kids from low-income families grow academically and break the cycle of poverty, Horizons Hampton Roads provides summer programming that offers 400 children in Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach academic and enrichment experiences, such as swimming lessons, STEM activities, and field trips.
"We have a project-based learning so they're out in the environment every day trying to solve real-world problems," Smith explained. "We do pre- and post-data. Within our program in the summer, students grow in reading and math over 8 to 12 weeks. Our high school students graduate at a rate of 97 percent, which is higher than many and most of the local high schools. They come back, and they have a heart for service. We even have people who have attended the program from K through 8 who are now our teachers, so the ripple is wide and far-reaching with what we do in our program."
When asked about the impact of the lost funding, Smith said, "Well the impact is very, very significant for the fact that we don't have enough money to cover us throughout our whole entire program cycle. And so now we're going out enlisting the public, other [funding sources], to try to fill in the gap. And most importantly, which we don't want to do, we may have to cut parts of our programming so that we can still serve children."
The organization is now raising funds, noting that $30 pays for two field trips for a student.
Horizons Hampton Roads’ summer program is set to kick off on June 25.
If you'd like more information or want to get involved visit the Horizons Hampton Roads' website by clicking this link.
