CHARLESTON, S.C., Oct. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB), the world's leading cloud software company powering social good, today announced it will make a multi-year, six-figure gift to Big Brothers Big Sisters to build greater equity, social capital and a stronger, more diverse global workforce.
Part of Blackbaud's gift will support a new program called the BIG Beyond Scholar Program hosted by Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Lowcountry in Charleston, S.C., where Blackbaud is headquartered. This program is one exemplification of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America's strategic "Big Futures" framework, which seeks to build equitable approaches to strengthen career and post-secondary readiness among youth.
Key learnings from the local BIG Beyond Scholar Program in Charleston will be shared with hundreds of other Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies as the organization looks for new ways to prepare scholars around the world for life beyond graduation. In addition, Blackbaud will make gifts across the Big Brothers Big Sisters international network to support efforts to bridge the divide between education and employment for under-resourced youth around the world.
"For more than forty years, our company has invested in education and equity in our local communities," said Mike Gianoni, president and CEO, Blackbaud. "We're proud to make this contribution to the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization to support college and career readiness for high-potential youth locally, nationally and internationally."
"Big Brothers Big Sisters and Blackbaud share a common commitment to bridging the opportunity gap for high potential and under-resourced youth, and building a diverse workforce," said Merridith Crowe, CEO, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Lowcountry. "Our scholars deserve every opportunity to engage successfully in our growing economy and to imagine they belong at companies like Blackbaud. Simultaneously, there is a need in the technology industry to foster the most inclusive workforce possible, as BIPOC teammates are highly underrepresented in the STEM workforce. Together, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Blackbaud can help address this problem with a real-world solution."
Housed at James Island Charter High School, the BIG Beyond Scholar Program will invest in a cohort of 25-30 high-potential scholars each year, over the next three years. Scholars begin as sophomores and will be matched with mentors who will stay with them for three years as they develop an enhanced individual graduation plan. With the help of their parents, mentors, advisors and counselors, each scholar will build a plan to navigate educational and post-secondary choices such as career, trade programs, the military, or university and college. These mentoring relationships will also provide scholars with the highly valuable social and emotional support that is at the heart of mentorship.
Blackbaud's gift will sponsor ten students in the program over three years. Students in the program will have the opportunity to complete a paid internship or summer youth employment opportunity, with Blackbaud or other companies supporting the initiative, prior to graduating high school. As part of this partnership, Blackbaud employees will have the opportunity to participate in different service and educational opportunities with Big Brothers Big Sisters, such as participating as mentors, being guest speakers or sharing their skills and experiences with students to create excitement around the possibility of careers in the STEM field.
Blackbaud will track the progress of this investment over the next three years and will actively connect its employees to service opportunities to join Big Brothers Big Sisters in their mission of helping all youth achieve their full potential.
About Blackbaud
Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) is the world's leading cloud software company powering social good. Serving the entire social good community—nonprofits, higher education institutions, K–12 schools, healthcare organizations, faith communities, arts and cultural organizations, foundations, companies and individual change agents—Blackbaud connects and empowers organizations to increase their impact through cloud software, services, expertise and data intelligence. The Blackbaud portfolio is tailored to the unique needs of vertical markets, with solutions for fundraising and CRM, marketing, advocacy, peer-to-peer fundraising, corporate social responsibility, school management, ticketing, grantmaking, financial management, payment processing and analytics. Serving the industry for four decades, Blackbaud is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina, and has operations in the United States, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.
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Forward-looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding expected benefits of products and product features. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks; uncertainty regarding increased business and renewals from existing customers; continued success in sales growth; management of integration of acquired companies and other risks associated with acquisitions; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles, particularly in larger organization; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC filings for Blackbaud, copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud's investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.
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