The Robin Hood Foundation, New York City’s largest poverty-fighting organization, announced that it will award Bronx Community College (BCC) with a $930,000 grant to its Future Now program over the next 24 months. The grant will continue to fund important services, including free High School Equivalency Exam preparation and vocational training classes, student counseling and career exploration, along with college preparation and enrollment services to students ages 17 to 24. 
 
“Once again, we are pleased that the Robin Hood Foundation recognizes the work we do at BCC and the impact the Future Now program has on our community,” said BCC Future Now Director Elizabeth Payamps. “This grant will continue to assist us in reaching our goals to educate students and help elevate them from poverty – goals that are directly aligned with Robin Hood’s mission.” 
 
Robin Hood has been supporting Future Now since 2007. Among the goals of this latest grant are to enroll 400 participants in High School Equivalency exam prep courses and 120 new students in associate degree programs at BCC. The grant also will provide 
follow-up and retention services for all enrolled participants, with the aim to ensure a three-year graduation rate of at least 30 percent of participants enrolled in college. 
 
Of the 1,000 BCC students in the Future Now program, 95% have been impacted by the justice system including personal incarceration, probation, court involvement and/or have family and friends who have been involved. The Future Now program caters to the individualized needs of the students it serves by providing them with viable pathways to self-sufficiency and lessening their likelihood of recidivism.