LOUISVILLE, Ky., May 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A national
two-generation family learning program that aims to provide a
solution to the educational challenges facing low-income and
ethnically diverse families has expanded from 10 to 15 communities.
The following organizations were each awarded a $175,000 grant from Toyota and the National
Center for Families Learning (NCFL) to launch Toyota Family
Learning:
- Village of Promise, Huntsville,
Ala.
- Broward County Public Schools,
Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
- Public Education Foundation, Las
Vegas
- Louisville Free Public Library Foundation, Louisville, Ky.
- Plano Independent School District, Plano, Texas
These cities join programs in Bronx,
N.Y.; Cincinnati;
Denver; Detroit; Houston; Lincoln,
Neb.; Milwaukee;
Providence, R.I.; San Mateo, Calif.; and San Pedro, Calif. An end goal to the
initiative is to strengthen communities by providing opportunities
for participants to both learn together and serve their
communities.
Toyota Family Learning is a forward-thinking, four-part approach
to two-generation learning. Key areas include: Parent and Child
Together (PACT) Time® that focuses on parents and children learning
together; parents learning together; family to family mentoring;
and, Family Service Learning projects in the community.
Sara Aguirre joined Toyota Family
Learning in Louisville with the
hope that it will start her on a path to find a better job and
improve her family's quality of life by helping her get her GED®
certificate and apply to college. She is learning more English and
is relying less on her children to translate.
"My three children and I love PACT Time®," Aguirre said.
"Spending that time together is priceless. I know I am learning how
to better help them with their homework. We have fun with it and
are a stronger family because of it."
An independent evaluation found that among families graduating
from Toyota Family Learning programs:
- 90% of parents increased their engagement in their children's
education
- 96% of parents became better teachers to their children
- 75% of parents increased their English language skills
- 34% of parents got a better job
More information on the exponential impact of Toyota Family
Learning and NCFL's two-generation efforts is available here.
"Toyota Family Learning is elevating families and communities
nationwide," said Sharon Darling,
president and founder of NCFL. "As parents are empowered through
our two-generation approach to education, service learning, and
technology training, they are able to engage with their children
and form a stronger bond."
This year, NCFL and Toyota celebrate 25 years of partnership.
Since 1991, more than 2 million families across the country have
been impacted by programs developed by NCFL – a pioneer in the
concept of families learning and serving together to raise literacy
levels and improve communities. Toyota has invested more than
$46 million to fund two-generation
family literacy programs at more than 280 sites in 55 communities
and 31 states.
"Toyota is proud to stand with NCFL through the past quarter
century," said Mike Goss, general
manager, Toyota Social Innovation for Toyota Motor Engineering and
Manufacturing North America, Inc. "These NCFL programs help get
people where they need to be by bridging the gap between classroom
and lifelong learning."
The Toyota Family Learning initiative also includes two online
learning communities: Toyota Family Trails, a website that inspires
families nationwide to learn through family exploration and
adventure, and Family Time Machine, which encourages grantee site
families to learn and thrive together.
ABOUT NATIONAL CENTER FOR FAMILIES LEARNING
The
National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) is a national
nonprofit organization dedicated to helping adults and children
learn together. NCFL creates and deploys innovative programs and
strategies that support learning, literacy, and family engagement
in education. From the classroom to the community to the digital
frontier, NCFL collaborates with educators, advocates, and
policy-makers to help families construct hotspots for learning
wherever they go. For more information on NCFL's 27-year track
record, visit www.familieslearning.org.
ABOUT TOYOTA
Toyota (NYSE: TM), the world's top automaker and creator of the
Prius and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building
vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota, Lexus
and Scion brands. Over the past 50 years, we've built more
than 30 million cars and trucks in North
America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in the
U.S.) and directly employ more than 44,000 people (more than 34,000
in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (1,500 in the
U.S.) sold more than 2.8 million cars and trucks (nearly 2.5
million in the U.S.) in 2015 – and about 80 percent of all Toyota
vehicles sold over the past 20 years are still on the road
today.
Toyota partners with philanthropic organizations across the
country, with a focus on education, safety and the environment. As
part of this commitment, we share the company's extensive know-how
garnered from building great cars and trucks to help community
organizations and other nonprofits expand their ability to do good.
For more information about Toyota, visit
www.toyotanewsroom.com.
Media Contacts
Lisa
Avetisian
National Center for Families Learning
lavetisian@familieslearning.org
502-718-2725
Ashley Brauer
Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations,
for NCFL
ashley@guthriemayes.com
502-649-3205
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160503/362871
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160503/362917LOGO
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160503/362916LOGO
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/toyota-ncfl-expand-national-learning-program-to-five-new-cities-300261849.html
SOURCE Toyota