WASHINGTON — A District-based nonprofit that helps college-bound students of incarcerated parents reach their education goals is getting us uplifted.
Currently 2.7 million American children have a parent who is incarcerated, leaving that child not only without a parent, but with the stigma that often comes along with it.
Often these children face barriers to academic success from an early age. That's where D.C. native Yasmin Arrington comes in. She is the executive director and founder of "ScholarCHIPS," a nonprofit that looks to break the cycle by offering mentoring, peer support and college scholarships, inspiring students to complete their college education
ScholarCHIPS’ 13th annual awards ceremony honored its largest group of scholarship winners to date with 24 recipients. More students were able to apply for the awards this year because of technology that connects loved ones to their incarcerated family members. That technology, by the company Securus Technologies, distributed the scholarship announcement to 600,000 tablets in correctional facilities nationwide which led to a 900% increase in scholarships across 27 states.
The keynote address was given by Baltimore native Pinky Cole, the founder of a successful chain of vegan restaurants. Cole talked about her own experience of overcoming barriers of having an incarcerated parent.
To date, ScholarCHIPS has awarded over $500,000 to 88 scholarships and has helped 40 students get to and get through college.