An Update from the Board of Directors

Dear MOM Supporter:

As a key funder of Motivate Our Minds (MOM) I write to offer an update on the recent actions of the leadership of the organization and to affirm our continued commitment to the mission of our organization to help children and families to grow and flourish.

Like many youth serving organizations, the pandemic challenged how, when, and to whom we delivered our program, but the staff pivoted and developed ways to continue providing academic enrichment for children. As we look to the upcoming summer and academic year, we are developing a plan to respond to the critical educational needs of the children in our community and to assess our impact.

We have work to do, bridges to build, and trust to restore, but we are all committed to sustaining the mission of MOM while exploring opportunities to expand our reach in the community. We also have dedicated staff who are equally committed to serving youth in our community. With the assistance of an external consultant, we will spend the next two months developing a six-month and twelve-month action plan to address the organization’s gaps and leverage our strengths.

We have identified some key priorities for MOM:

  • Hire a new Executive Director

  • Continue to provide academic enrichment in the after-school program with a focus on home-work help, Math, and Reading including:

    • individualized reading assistance with an on-site reading specialist

    • a robust literacy program with a Book Club during the academic year and a Summer Reading Camp

  • Contribute to the community’s efforts to address the learning loss experienced by many students in our community

  • Strategic and intentional recruitment of additional board members

Once our plans are in place, we hope you will meet one-on-one with MOM leadership to share our vision and response to our challenges. Thirty-five years after its founding, we want to ensure this local treasure continues to impact our community for 35 more years. We are confident that we will be a more directed and empowered organization that can continue to positively impact our community.

Thank you for your continued belief in our organization and investment in our community by supporting our work.

Sincerely,

Ro-Anne Royer Engle

President, MOM Board of Directors

Board Members

Dave Concepcion

Mary Dollison (Co-Founder)

Michelle Kinsey

Julie Mason

Emery Peck

Chuck Reynolds