CONGRESO DE LATINOS UNIDOS RECEIVES OVER $3 MILLION TO PROVIDE EDUCATION AND FAMILY SUPPORT SERVICES TO K-3 STUDENTS AND FAMILIES 

April 26, 2023

Contact information: 

Julia Rivera, Chief External Affairs Officer 

Email: riveraju@congreso.net 

Mobile: 267-475-8460 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

CONGRESO DE LATINOS UNIDOS RECEIVES OVER $3 MILLION TO PROVIDE EDUCATION AND FAMILY SUPPORT SERVICES TO K-3 STUDENTS AND FAMILIES 

PHILADELPHIA, PA – Congreso has received $3.385 million from the William Penn Foundation to implement its Éxito K-3 Literacy strategy over the next 4 years at Pan American Academy Charter School and Julia de Burgos Elementary School. 

The Éxito K-3 Literacy Strategy targets the 2023-2024 kindergarten cohorts in two high need schools with critical literacy interventions, Éxito case management, and family supportive services to ensure youth can read proficiently by 4th grade. Congreso is also partnering with Research for Action as the third-party evaluator to measure the impact and effectiveness of the strategy.  

This project, part of the agency’s Mission to Impact strategy, is unique in that it provides both in-school and afterschool academic interventions to implement literacy activities and closely monitor student progress, as well as family and parent engagement strategies and targeted referrals to Congreso’s 25+ programs to ensure families have the support they need to support their students. 

“We are extremely grateful to the William Penn Foundation for embarking on this learning opportunity with Congreso and our partners to identify and implement academic and family engagement strategies in our community. This grant allows us to go deeper within our partner schools and engage in new and innovative ways to uncover what it takes to make long term impact on academic scores and family outcomes.” shared Brendan Conlin, Congreso’s Chief Program Officer.  

While Congreso has a long history of working with Pan American Academy and Julia de Burgos Elementary in the afterschool space, Congreso believes that additional academic and family engagement interventions that were proven effective in the Éxito high school model can be successfully adapted to the K-3 environment and will allow youth and their families to thrive and successfully achieve key milestones.  

“Connecting young students and their families with high-quality academic activities and supportive services represents an opportunity to make a positive impact on early literacy development,” said Jennifer Stavrakos, Interim Director of the Great Learning Program at the William Penn Foundation. “Our investment in these two schools advances a series of interventions designed to move the needle during the critical K-3 years of a child’s education.” 

About Congreso: Congreso de Latinos Unidos, Inc. is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1977 with a mission to enable individuals and families in predominantly Latino neighborhoods to achieve economic self-sufficiency and wellbeing. In Fiscal Year 2022, over 12,000 unduplicated clients were served through 25+ programs focused on education, workforce development, health, housing, and family services.  

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