Park City, Utah (January 27, 2021) – Park City Community Foundation is proud to announce the launch of the RISE Fund, an initiative designed to facilitate equitable access opportunities for students wishing to partake in sports, clubs, or extracurricular activities at Park City High School (PCHS).
Through its funding, the RISE Fund aims for extracurricular high school programs to include all Park City students both in socioeconomic status and racial/cultural diversity by ensuring cost is not a limiting factor for students who wish to participate in sports or clubs at PCHS.
In the Park City School District alone, 23% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. In addition, some families who do not qualify for the lunch subsidy can still be precluded from full participation due to their financial situations and the high cost of programs. The Community Foundation estimates that one-third of the PCHS student body are unable to fully commit to participation in extracurriculars due to cost or other barriers.
By eliminating financial barriers such as fees, travel and equipment costs, and other outlying factors not currently covered by scholarship opportunities at PCHS, the RISE Fund has an opportunity to create access for students whose families are facing financial hardship.
“Now more than ever, it’s essential to create opportunities for student connection both inside and outside of school walls,” says Sarah MacCarthy, Community Impact Manager at Park City Community Foundation. “The pandemic has caused isolation across our community. We believe this initiative will not only increase access to activities at the high school but also help facilitate healthy relationships and healthy minds.”
Park City Community Foundation is committed to the advancement of equity, diversity, and inclusion and toward making Park City a place where all people can fully realize their aspirations. The Community Foundation operates initiatives and funds that address emerging and unmet issues in greater Park City. Generous donors have provided the initial grant to make the RISE (Recreation, Inclusion, Sports, and Extracurriculars) Fund possible, and the Community Foundation staff will implement this exciting project.
Together, we can identify the systemic challenges barring low-income students from extracurricular activities and address them in a more cohesive way.
Park City Community Foundation’s Solomon Fund is a program that offers Latinx elementary-aged students’ opportunities to participate in sports and recreation, has been wildly successful. By subsidizing costs reaching out to families, the program has bridged communication gaps between families and programs at local organizations. Using Solomon Fund as a model, the Community Foundation expects the RISE Fund to provide similar opportunities for low-income students at PCHS through grants and close relationships between Community Foundation staff and school staff to create effective communication channels. Additionally, the Community Foundation’s high school intern will play a critical role in getting the word out to high school staff and students.
Students interested in receiving support from the RISE Fund to participate in extracurricular activities can call Jose Chacon at (801) 657-0106 or send him an email at jose@parkcitycf.org.
Donors who would like to contribute to the success of the RISE Fund can contact Sam Mueller at sam@parkcitycf.org.
About Park City Community Foundation: Park City Community Foundation plays a vital role in solving the most challenging problems in Park City. We care for and invest in our people, place, and culture by bringing together local nonprofits, donors, and community leaders to contribute financial resources and innovative ideas to benefit all the people of Park City—now and in the future. As the home of Live PC Give PC, Women’s Giving Fund, Solomon Fund, and other important initiatives, the Community Foundation has brought millions of dollars to the greater Park City community and Summit County. Learn more about donating, volunteering, fundraising, and getting involved at parkcitycf.org.
Media Contact: Christine Coleman, Park City Community Foundation, christine@parkcitycf.org, 415-209-8506.
Posted in: Our Impact