The Communities Foundation of Texas awarded $10 million in grants to several Dallas-area nonprofits in support of education initiatives.
The grants will go toward efforts to reduce absenteeism, develop responsible AI adoption in classrooms, and support “disconnected” young adults who are out of school but under- or unemployed.
“Some of the greatest challenges in education are not just academic,” Robert Kent, chief philanthropy officer at the foundation, said during an announcement Wednesday. "They are about helping young people to reconnect to opportunity and envision a future for themselves.”
The organizations receiving grants are CFT’s Educate Texas, Communities in Schools of the Dallas Region, For Oak Cliff, The Dallas Foundation, Texas 2036 and United to Learn.
The largest grant, $3.7 million, will go toward Educate Texas’ AI + Education Collaborative, which works with educators, policymakers and nonprofits “to help facilitate the responsible adoption of AI in education,” according to a news release.
Another $1.3 million will go to Educate Texas for its Opportunity Youth Collaborative.
A new chronic absenteeism initiative led by For Oak Cliff received $2 million.
The initiative is a neighborhood approach in partnership with Big Thought and Communities in Schools of the Dallas Region to help improve the attendance of middle school students in South Dallas, South Oak Cliff and Wilmer-Hutchens.
Chronic absenteeism – when students miss at least 10% of days in a school year – spiked during the pandemic and has remained a problem statewide. Taylor Toynes, co-founder and CEO of For Oak Cliff, said addressing the issue could benefit districts financially.
“Whenever we see kids go to school, it helps alleviate the burden of the district when they have shortfalls when it comes to budgeting,” he said. “Because chronic absenteeism is students going to school regardless of policy, ideology, it brings dollars back into our schools.”
Other grants will help fund multiple initiatives and provide scholarships for students.
- Communities in Schools of the Dallas Region- $600,000.
- The Dallas Foundation- $500,000
- Texas 2036- $500,000
- United to Learn- $250,000
- CFT 2026 Scholarships for students- $2,000,000
“Our focus is straightforward,” Kent said. “Help more students stay on track and keep moving forward from early learning through college and career, these are the moments that shape a student's trajectory and in turn, their access to opportunity.”
Avery Escamilla-Wendell is KERA’s news intern. Got a tip? Email Avery at aescamillawendell@kera.org. You can follow her on Instagram @by_avery_escamilla.
