Dear Opening Act Family,
The 2018-2019 school year has begun, and I am excited to update you on Opening Act’s 3-Year Strategic Plan. Last Fall, we implemented the plan after an intense, 8-month period engaging with key stakeholders to gather insights and feedback to help identify and prioritize Opening Act’s focus through 2020. Those discussions helped us to determine the following top tier priorities:
A renewed commitment to serving the most vulnerable populations of students
A responsive approach to our students’ and schools’ needs with our core programming
A commitment to utilize Opening Act’s unique assets, skills, and networks to support our students’ success as they transition out of high school and on to their second act
We intend to deliver on these promises, primarily through three new programming initiatives:
Opening Act’s District 79 Expansion
Act 2: Opening Act’s College and Career Readiness Program
Middle School Expansion
We’re so excited to share that we have made significant strides this past year towards these goals:
We have increased from 50 schools on 19 campuses to 57 schools on 22 campuses.
We have added 3 District 79 sites for a total of 6 schools.
We launched Act 2 with a cohort of 12 students who graduated high school last spring and entered college this fall. We are expanding programming this year with an innovative model of online, peer mentorship and increased networking access to connect students to the greater Opening Act community.
We have begun to explore sites to pilot our Middle School Expansion in Fall of 2019.
As our programming expands, so, too, have our administrative efforts. Our staff continues to grow, allowing us to best serve our students and partnering schools. Through strategic fund development efforts, we are successfully securing the needed resources that allow us to bring our critical programming to New York City’s most vulnerable youth.
We look forward to keeping you updated as we continue to identify and pursue new and exciting opportunities to help us meet the ambitious goals of our Strategic Plan.
We are so grateful to you – our supporters and friends – for all that you do to help us make our biggest dreams a reality!
Sincerely,
Erika Atkins
Acting Executive Director