After School Matters

After School Matters provides life-changing after-school and summer program opportunities to more than 15,000 individual Chicago high school teens each year. Our hands-on, project-based apprenticeship and internship programs — in the arts, communications, science, sports and technology — empower teens to explore and develop their talents while gaining critical skills for work, college and beyond.

Big Shoulders Stock Market Program

The Big Shoulders Fund is a tax exempt non-profit organization whose mission is to provide support to the Catholic schools in the neediest areas of inner-city Chicago. Big Shoulders is unique in that administrative expenses are supported by an endowment and other income which ensures all funds raised go toward programs that benefit the Big Shoulders schools and the students they serve. Today the Big Shoulders Fund supports 82 schools—67 elementary and 15 high schools—educating nearly 21,000 students—80% minority, 61% living in poverty and 30% not Catholic. The Big Shoulders raises and invests $18 to $20 million annually in these schools for scholarships, special education programs, instructional equipment, school facility improvements, faculty support and operating grants. The investment in these schools is paying off and defying national trends with a 95% attendance rate, students on average perform at or above grade level by 7th grade, 80% of 8th graders choose to attend selective public schools or Catholic high schools, 85% of scholars choose to attend a Catholic or selective enrollment high school, 96% high school graduation rate and 88% of graduating scholars enrolling in college.

Gilda’s Club Chicago

Gilda’s Club Chicago supports anyone living with cancer – men, women, teens and children – along with their families and friends, as well as those who have lost someone to cancer. Our innovative program, including more than 350 free activities each month, is an essential complement to medical care and offers support groups, educational lectures, healthy lifestyle workshops, resource referrals, and social opportunities. Our mission is to ensure that all people impacted by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action and sustained by community. Gilda's Club Chicago is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and is funded through donations from individuals, businesses, foundations and special events. We are an affiliate of the Cancer Support Community, which is a worldwide network of more than 50 Clubs and 100 satellite locations, as well as a provider of online resources.

Glass Slipper Project

The Glass Slipper Project was one of the first and is one of the largest Charitable Prom Organizations in place across the U.S. Founded in 1999, this Chicago-based organization provides prom dresses and accessories to girls with junior and/or senior status in high school. The Glass Slipper Project has received extensive local and national media attention, including an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show during its very first year of operation.

Good Sports

Good Sports gives all kids the lifelong benefits of sport and physical activity by providing new equipment, apparel and footwear to those most in need. Since 2003, Good Sports has provided more than $17 million worth of equipment to more than 2,700 youth programs, impacting nearly THREE MILLION kids. Good Sports has also been awarded a coveted 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, the nation’s largest charity evaluator, for sound fiscal management, transparency and accountability; is a Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance accredited charity; and is listed on Social Impact Exchange’s S&I 100, an index of top American nonprofits creating meaningful social impact.

La Rabida Foundation

La Rabida Children’s Hospital provides specialized, family-centered health care to children with medically complex conditions, disabilities, and chronic illness. Through expertise, compassion, and advocacy, we help children and their families reach their fullest potential, regardless of their ability to​ pay.

Lincoln Park Zoo

Lincoln Park Zoo is dedicated to connecting people with nature by providing a free, family-oriented wildlife experience in the heart of Chicago and by exhibiting leadership and advancing the highest quality of animal care, education, science and conservation.

Maywood Fine Arts

The mission of Maywood Fine Arts (MFA) is to provide affordable quality arts and fitness education to enrich and transform the lives of children and families in Maywood and surrounding communities. MFA was established in 1996 by concerned parents and community leaders to help combat escalating rates of violence in Maywood, by providing enriching alternative activities for children. From the beginning, a key commitment for MFA founders was to create an arts center in the heart of the community that would serve as a safe place for children to attend classes and engage in healthy activities. Through grass-roots efforts, MFA transformed a previously boarded-up bank building into a vibrant center of arts activity in downtown Maywood. Twenty years later, MFA continues to transform the community with a new, state-of-the art Center for Dance and Fitness located across from its iconic, 1920’s headquarters facility and gym. With a full schedule of classes and special events plus outreach programs in the community, Maywood Fine Arts provides a safe, stable environment that builds self-esteem and develops healthy lifestyles for over 4000 children each year.

Museum of Science and Industry

The Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago (MSI), the largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere, is home to more than 35,000 artifacts and more than 400,000 square feet of hands-on experiences designed to spark scientific inquiry and creativity. Since opening our doors in 1933, we’ve welcomed more than 180 million guests from around the world. Our mission, to inspire the inventive genius in everyone by presenting captivating and compelling experiences that are real and educational, is realized through world-class exhibits such as: Science Storms, an exhibit revealing the science behind some of nature’s most powerful phenomena; YOU! The Experience, an exhibit that lets you explore what it means to live a vital, healthy life in the 21st century; and the U-505 Submarine, the only German U-boat in the United States.

New York Junior League

The New York Junior League (NYJL) is an organization of women committed to promoting volunteerism, developing the potential of women, and improving communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable.

San Diego Ducks Sled Hockey Team

San Diego Ducks Sled Hockey is a USA Hockey, U.S. Paralympic, and NHL recognized sled hockey club providing clinics, recreational and competitive teams, and resources for those interested in pursuing national, international, and Paralympic competition for physically disabled youth and adults. We use hockey as a tool to teach athletes to not make excuses due to their disabilities but to overcome their challenges and become a productive member of society on and off the ice. We are more than just hockey; we teach a positive mindset that saves lives and inspires others.

The ARK

The ARK is an independent, community-funded non-profit agency which provides a broad array of social, medical, and legal services to thousands of low-income individuals and families each year within the Chicagoland Jewish community. The ARK's mission is to create a safety net for Chicagoland Jews in need by providing vital human services, and to build bridges between volunteers and those in need. Founded in 1971 as a small, free medical clinic serving an indigent, elderly population on Chicago's north side, The ARK now serves 3,700 clients each year, by providing medical, dental, and eye care and prescription medications; food; complete case management; transitional housing; legal aid; mental health counseling and day treatment; job counseling; rent and utility assistance; clothing and household goods; Jewish spiritual enrichment; and more. Services are provided by a small staff and by 2,500 professional and lay volunteers, from The ARK's two locations in Chicago and Northbrook. The ARK charges no fees for any of its services. A fundamental component of The ARK's mission is to serve as a venue for community members to contribute their time and talents on behalf of their neighbors in need. This policy of direct, personal involvement educates the community as to the needs of its most vulnerable members, and provides opportunities for hand-on engagement in caring for those in need.

The Smart Museum

The Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago opens the world through art and ideas.

Thresholds

Established in 1959, Thresholds provides healthcare, housing, and hope for thousands of persons with mental illnesses in Illinois each year. Through care, employment, advocacy, and housing, Thresholds assists and inspires people with mental illnesses to reclaim their lives. Thresholds is one of the oldest and largest providers of recovery services for persons with mental illnesses in Illinois. We reject the notion that anyone is a lost cause, utilizing evidence-based practices and a wide range of supports to treat the whole person, rather than just the disease. We offer 30 innovative programs at more than 100 locations throughout Chicago, the adjacent suburbs, and McHenry and Kankakee Counties. Services include assertive outreach, case management, housing, employment, education, psychiatry, primary care, substance abuse treatment, and research. Last year, Thresholds served more than 9,500 adults and youth, with 75% of services delivered out in the community, representing more than 500,000 hours of care.

Toigo Foundation

The Toigo Foundation is committed to ethical leadership and broader diversity of thought and experience in business. Our mission is to foster the career advancement and increased leadership of underrepresented talent by creating mechanisms for greater inclusion from the classroom to the boardroom. For more than 25 years, the Foundation has advanced the success of thousands of talented diverse professionals as they ascend through their MBA studies and embark on careers and investment roles across a variety of finance industry sectors. Toigo’s work is anchored by its highly regarded fellowship program and today, Toigo Alumni represent a dynamic generation of professional talent demonstrating the merits of inclusion balanced with skill, ethics and integrity.

Voices for Illinois Children

Voices for Illinois Children champions the full development of every child in Illinois to assure the future well-being of everyone in the state. We work with families, communities, and policymakers across multiple issue areas to help children grow up healthy, happy, safe, loved, and well-educated.