Your donation will help us produce journalism like this. Please give today.

LA Unified is getting another Pupil Services and Attendance Counselor, thanks to a $250,000 grant from Partners in Progress, a new collaboration between Citi Foundation and the Low Income Investment Fund.

The money comes to the district from the Youth Policy Institute, one of 13 organizations around the country that won a Partners in Progress grant to increase economic progress in low-income communities.

For LA Unified, the money will support a district employee based at the YPI Pacoima Community Center and charged with helping area students stay in school or return after dropping out. YPI is also using grant money to fund two YPI jobs designed to identify and expand public-private partnerships in community development.

“A lot of schools have these kinds of counselors,” said Heather Fukunaga, YPI’s assistant director of development. “But by placing this position out of a school, it helps create a further reach to help more students and families.”

The Youth Policy Institute works to reduce poverty in LA neighborhoods by ensuring families have access to high quality schools, wrap-around education and technology services.

Each grant recipient has committed to initiate or deepen efforts to improve neighborhoods and create pathways to economic opportunity. Partners in Progress calls the $3.25 million grant program “a quarterback model.”

“Recognizing that there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution to improving economic opportunity, we know the quarterback model works to align smart approaches with smart financing,” said Nancy O. Andrews, President and CEO of LIIF. “Through Partners in Progress, we hope to build a movement. By creating a network of quarterbacks, we can promote learning and formalize a strategy that will fundamentally change our field for decades to come.”

Among the grant recipients are three other LA-based groups — BRIDGE Housing Corporation, LINC Housing and Little Tokyo Service Center.

Previous Posts: Youth Policy Institute Leads Way On LA Promise Neighborhood; “Promise Neighborhoods” Finally Launch in LA.