HOUSTON (February 11, 2022)- Lone Star College-Houston North recently completed the first iteration of the Impact Project, an accelerator training course for local non-profit organizations. This initiative was implemented as part of the college’s overall effort of being a community-oriented institution. “Our core mission is to educate college students. However, we also want to contribute to efforts that will make a positive impact on the communities that we serve. By working with local non-profit organizations, we can support our communities in a different, but strategic manner,” stated Dr. Quentin Wright, Lone Star College-Houston North President.
The Impact Project is designed to provide the participants with practical tools that will strengthen their business structure and improve the way the they communicate about the services they provide to their respective communities. The participants went through a series of session topics during the four-week program that included laws and regulations, management and organization, human resources, financial management, and fundraising. Furthermore, each organization was paired with a mentor whose background is non-profit management. The program concluded with a pitch competition that was designed to support with streamlining and packaging their organization’s information to attain funding opportunities. The college enlisted representatives from the CenterPoint Energy Foundation, Kinder Foundation, Houston Endowment, and George Foundation to serve as panelists for the pitch competition.
Five organizations, out of forty that applied, were selected to be a part of this inaugural program. The organizations were Breaking Chains Making Amends, Colors of Cancer, Inc., Making Awesome Things Happen (M.A.T.H.), South Union Community Development Corporation, and Women Who Look Ahead Mentoring. “Words cannot express how proud I am of the participating organizations. They were engaged, reflective, and showed a strong commitment to helping people within our local communities” stated Ashley Turner, Executive Director of Community Relations for Lone Star College-Houston North.
The Impact Project was made possible through the generous funding of the CenterPoint Energy Foundation. This foundation has been a strong supporter of communities within the City of Houston and Lone Star College. The college also expresses appreciation to Lauren Gore of LDR Advisory Partners who served as a collaborating partner during the planning phases of this program.
Lone Star College offers high-quality, low-cost academic transfer and career training education to 93,000+ students each semester. LSC is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to support student success. Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., serves as chancellor of LSC, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area and has been named a 2021 Great Colleges to Work For® institution by the Chronicle of Higher Education and ranked 35th in Texas in the Forbes ‘America’s Best Employers By State’ list. LSC consists of eight colleges, seven centers, eight Workforce Centers of Excellence and Lone Star Corporate College. To learn more, visit LoneStar.edu.