JAG-K
TOPEKA – Jobs for America’s Graduates – Kansas (JAG-K) received a $2,500 grant provided by the Taco Bell Foundation to support approximately 4,000 youth in 79 JAG-K programs across the state. The funding will go towards sponsoring the State Career Development Conference in Salina on April 15, 2020. More than 200 students will attend the annual event, which features competitions in categories that showcase skills and competencies learned in the JAG-K program.
Hays High School participates in the JAG-K program.
“We are pleased to be a recipient of the Taco Bell Foundation’s investment in America’s youth,” said Chuck Knapp, President and CEO of JAG-K. “We appreciate Taco Bell Foundation’s commitment to education and empowering this nation’s next generation of leaders.”
JAG-K is one of more than 350 youth-serving organizations that will receive a portion of the nearly $6 million in grants being presented by the Taco Bell Foundation’s philanthropic arm this year. The awarded grants are an example of the Taco Bell Foundation’s goal to empower young people to channel their passions and go on to achieve their dreams.
“Young people have always been the heart and soul of our brand,” said Frank Tucker, Chief People Officer at Taco Bell and President of the Taco Bell Foundation. “Expanding our impact in this community is one of the best ways we can support the passions of young people and create opportunities that help them unlock and reach their potential.”
About JAG-K
JAG-K is a multi-year, in-school program for students in grades seven through 12 that offers tools to successfully transition students into post-secondary school, the military, or directly into the workforce with marketable skills. Participants in the program face multiple barriers to success that their JAG-K Career Specialist helps them overcome through a nationally accredited evidence-based model. In 2018, JAG-K students had a 98 percent graduation rate.
The 501(c) 3 not-for-profit organization is one of 35 state affiliate organizations of Jobs for America’s Graduates and is primarily funded through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant to the State of Kansas administered by DCF. In addition to school districts and DCF, JAG-K partners with the Kansas Department of Education. Other JAG-K funding sources include AT&T, John Deere, and Taco Bell.
To learn more about JAG-K, visit www.jagkansas.org, ‘Jobs for America’s Graduates- Kansas’ on Facebook, and on Twitter at @JAG_Kansas.