The mission of the YouthBuild Asset Trust, which was established with a $300,000 grant from the Ford Foundation in 2002, is to assist graduates of YouthBuild programs as they achieve their goals of economic independence through education, career enhancement, and building assets. Flexible funding and scholarship funds are a critical resource for many young people as they strive to achieve their goals.
Recent supporters of the Alumni Asset Trust have included: the Schultz Family Foundation, the Lyons Family Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, William Graustein, and several other individual donors.
From 2002-2018, the Alumni Asset Trust made 774 gifts to 332 YouthBuild graduates totaling $1.3M with an average gift of $1,671. During this period, 510 Asset Trust gifts (66%) were made to help YouthBuild graduates attend and complete college or graduate school, 85 gifts (11%) helped graduates pay rent or other housing expenses, 54 gifts (7%) supported entrepreneurship or career opportunities, 41 gifts (5%) helped pay overdue bills, 28 gifts (4%) helped purchase or repair vehicles, and 56 gifts (7%) were for other purposes.
A few examples of the type of support provided include:
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis with funds distributed quarterly.
Asset Trust funding allows for five awards to be given out per quarter, totaling 20 awards per year. Those wishing to apply for an Asset Trust may do so once per calendar year with at least six months in between submissions. Careful consideration is given to each application submitted. It may be required that due to the high volume of applicants, some submissions are carried over to the next quarter for review.
