To: DoSomething.

org From: Chantell Ramberg Date: December 4th, 2012 Subject: Grant Proposal

With the overwhelming amount of children having complications with literacy and education around the world, Fargo, ND is no different. Being a city that has a variety of nationalities making up the population, we need to have sufficient programs to better accommodate the diverse languages present. The most important area we need to consider is the children who are introduced to the English language and form of education without any additional help in learning in a way that will not be overwhelming or stressful for a child at a young age. Childhood is the most important time in any persons life as it truly shapes the individual to become who they are to be. In addition to that statement, Fargo has the resources to help these children therefore we need to make sure they are equipped with the tools to be who they have the potential to be.

CURRENT SITUATION
All star tutoring has helped a 10 year old girl this year go from not being able to spell or write, to being able to write her own name without help. She came to the United States in July and All Star Tutoring hasn't only helped with her education, it's given her the opportunity to create friendships with classmates and learn the value of different cultures that surround her in her everyday life. This example of learning and education through Charism is just one of many life changing experiences these children go through on an everyday basis. Charism is a non-profit organization in Fargo, North Dakota, that strives to help low income families in helping their children with their education, health and well being in general. Charism has received rewards of excellence in increasing individuals and familys strengths and potential, which is an amazing goal for a nonprofit organization that has helped hundreds of families in the area. (charism.org) Due to my interest in public relations, I find Charism to be one of the most productive organizations in Fargo. Growing up a child from a lower income family for a period of time, I appreciate what Charism strives to provide in a community. Articles in the Fargo Forum have stated that 7% of the childhood population lives in high poverty areas. (INFORUM) Kids Count has reported that African American, American Indians, and Latinos are 6 to 9 times more likely than white children to live in economically distressed neighborhoods, making Charism an excellent place for minority families to go as well to improve their well being in an area they are not familiar with. (INFORUM)

In a previous interview with Julie Haugen, grant writer for the Impact Foundation, I found that she is very familiar with Charism due to the Impact Foundation being a joined supporter. I have asked for her aid during this proposal, due to the fact she practices grant writing as a career. The foundation I am writing the proposal for is an online website called DoSomething.Org. This is a foundation focused on the 25 and under age group looking to make a difference in their community. Julie is guiding me through this process as she would in a professional setting through Impact. Any questions I might have, she will be available for revising via email, or communicating over the phone. DoSomething.org provides grants to students my age on a weekly basis, making me feel as if I have a real chance at helping the All Stars Tutoring program stay at Charism. Children that have grown up in poverty without adequate help with reading; language barriers, etc. have less of a chance of graduating from high school, or continuing their education in hopes of attending a university. Charism has a tutoring program available to low income families that help children succeed in their education called All-Star Tutoring. This is a program that has been up and running since January 2012, with success ever since. (charism.org) In order to continue our future leaders potential, I believe funding needs to be continued through Charism. According to the Childrens Defense Fund, these are the statistics regarding education in North Dakota:
Percent of public school fourth graders: Unable to read at grade level Unable to do math at grade level Percent of public school eighth graders: Unable to read at grade level Unable to do math at grade level Number of 16- to 19-year-olds who have dropped out of high school
(http://www.cdf-mn.org/sites/nd/2012-north-dakota-children-in.pdf)

64.2% 53.6%

65.9% 57.4% 1,495

Due to these numbers, education is obviously an area we need to stress in bettering our state. If students cannot read at their own grade level in fourth grade, there is obviously going to still be a problem with their literacy as they grow older. All Stars Tutoring aids students that may fall in these percentages, preventing them from falling behind other kids their age. Another surprising statistic was the amount of students that drop out of high school is relatively

unknown, but I do know that a number of students that end up dropping out say it is due to work overload or not being able to keep up academically. Though some reasoning may be out of their own control, at least the All Stars Tutoring program is there to help these students if they are in need of assistance.

PLAN Knowing that they All Stars Tutoring Program is concentrated on academics, any extra funding could be put towards school supplies or even just the tutoring services in general. It could be put towards really anything that needs funding, as they are a non-profit organization, but a little bit does go a long way. If I were awarded this funding, I would speak with the director at Charism to further distribute the funding to this program. As they have not had any donations coming from a single student before, they are very happy to know that younger generations are very excited to help others in their community. In addition to the do something application, I am also going to try and meet with the director of Charism to better educate myself on this area at their non-profit establishment. I would also like to meet with some of the children that attend classes through the All Star Tutoring Program to better understand their triumphs and successes. I believe this will help me in my argument to receive funding. Prior to writing my application, I am hoping that I will learn more useful information that will help me have a more persuasive argument when completing my proposal. I am also going to be using my fellow classmates as proof readers and editors before I send my application and grant proposal into Dosomething.org. This will catch errors that I might have missed when completing the project. Throughout this process, I will continue to research the program to make myself more knowledgeable about Charism and all it has to offer. If I were able to receive the $500 award to go towards my project, I would put all funding towards the All Stars Tutoring Program. If we keep concentrating on the education of every single student in our Fargo area, I believe we will have more university attendees, more children finishing high school, and not to mention children wanting to do well in school instead of getting in trouble outside of the classroom. If we instill the importance of education in the minds of these students, they will hopefully strive for a more prosperous future. OBJECTIVES In completing this grant proposal, I hope to truly help the children of Fargo, ND that attend Charism on a regular basis due to their own familys income issues they may have. In order to keep this program going, there needs to be some sort of funding that is implemented to keep the children with a stable learning environment. By implementing my plan of funding the All

Stars Tutoring Program, my goals are to provide extra funding to keep the organization running and up to date. If there is only funding every so often for a subject as important as the education of our children, I feel as if the quality of their learning will only decrease due to the lack of supplies etc. I also would like to become more involved in the tutoring process and even volunteer to tutor to see exactly where the funding would end up. Becoming more involved with the staff at Charism will also help me see the kind of progress will be made with the help of a donation. Continuing working with a non-profit such as Charism and seeing how much they help children of our community will hopefully help these non profits grow and help our city grow as well. QUALIFICATIONS I truly believe that I am qualified to submit this proposal because of my background with writing and communication skills with other people. Being a junior in my English major at North Dakota State University, I am currently involved in higher level courses of English concentrating on writing and literature. I have written papers throughout my college career that were focuses on many different subjects and formats, and been successful. In writing this proposal I do believe that I have the skills to adapt my writing to a grant format and create a professional document that is that of what a grant writer would produce when looking to fund a proposal. I have already been involved in this course for a few months now, making me knowledgeable on the creation of a proposal and what needs to be done and in what order before a grant is able to be funded. RESOURCES
Childrens Defense Fund-North Dakota. Web Page. 2012 North Dakota Children in the States Report. 26 Jan. 2012 http://www.cdf-mn.org/sites/nd/2012-north-dakota-children-in.pdf Grants. http://www.dosomething.org/ Schmidt, Helmut. More North Dakota children living in high-poverty areas. 23 Feb. 2012. Inforum. http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/351930/ Youth Development Programs at Charism. http://www.charism.org/YouthDevelopment.htm