July 21, 2014

Mayor Emanuel Announces City To Receive Federal Funds To Help At-Risk Youth

More than 3,100 students will be reached during the 2014-15 school year for Becoming a Man and Match programs

Mayor's Press Office    312.744.3334

CHICAGO – Mayor Rahm Emanuel issued the below statement following President Barack Obama's announcement on Monday that the City of Chicago, Chicago Public Schools (CPS), and the University of Chicago Crime Lab and Urban Education Lab will receive $10 million in new funding to support the expansion of Youth Guidance's Becoming A Man (BAM) program and the Match program as well as a large-scale study of the programs and expansion to other cities.

The funding was made possible through new commitments in support of President Obama's My Brother's Keeper initiative. BAM offers mentoring and cognitive behavioral therapy to at-risk youth, while Match is an individualized math tutoring program also for at-risk youth. The programs have seen significant growth during Mayor Emanuel's tenure. Three years ago, Match did not exist and BAM provided support to just 400 students in 15 schools. During the upcoming school year, BAM will serve 2,000 students at 37 CPS schools, and Match will serve 1,100 students at 15 CPS schools.

"President Obama's strong investment will amplify the City, Chicago Public Schools, and the philanthropic sector's support for the Becoming A Man mentoring and counseling program and the Match tutoring program to more students at more schools in neighborhoods throughout our city," said Mayor Emanuel. "Through this investment, BAM and Match, which have grown substantially in just a few years, will be providing thousands of Chicago's children with high-quality educational experience, an alternative to the street, and the opportunity for a bright future that every child deserves."

CPS will receive $4 Million in federal Title 1 funding, made possible by the recently approved No Child Left Behind waiver to the State of Illinois. Additionally, a $6 Million grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health, will support BAM, Match, and the University of Chicago's large-scale study of the programs and expansion to other cities.

To find out more about BAM and Match, visit http://www.youth-guidance.org/our-programs/b-a-m-becoming-a-man/ and http://www.matcheducation.org/match-corps/match-corps-chicago.

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