From the Executive Director: South Bronx United Receives Gift from MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving Open Call

Dear SBU Community,

The past two years have been an exciting time at South Bronx United. We opened the SBU Clubhouse in 2022. We saw two classes of SBU Academy graduates reach new heights. We expanded the reach of our immigration legal services at a time of unprecedented need in the city. We surpassed 1,600 children and young people served in one year. And, we launched the Clubhouse Café as a hub to provide job skills training, youth employment, and community connections. Our impact is evident through these programs and the youth and families they have touched.

Under the surface, however, our story has been more complex. It has been an uphill climb to secure the resources needed for our growing programs and expanded infrastructure while still aiming to deliver the maximum social impact possible with constituent needs as high as ever.

Given this backdrop, we’re especially thrilled to share that South Bronx United has been selected to receive a $2 million gift as an awardee of MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving Open Call.

This gift marks the single largest donation, by multiple magnitudes, to South Bronx United in our 15 years. It is a testament to our mission and vision, to the dedication of our staff and volunteers, and to the investment that we make in the South Bronx community and in the dreams of its youth. It is a validation of our unique model for transforming the lives of low-income, first-generation, immigrant, and at-risk youth in our community. In March 2023, Yield Giving launched an Open Call for community-led, community-focused organizations whose explicit purpose is to enable individuals and families to achieve substantive improvement in their well-being through foundational resources. Our project was selected from among 6,353 applications from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico after a process of multiple levels of review, feedback, and diligence involving peer applicants and an external Evaluation Panel recruited for experience relevant to this cause.

South Bronx United will be leveraging this transformational gift to best serve the long-term success, sustainability, and positive impact of the organization. This gift will enable us to further our impact today while also planning for the future. We want to be here to serve the South Bronx until the day our services are no longer needed. This gift will provide us with the time, flexibility, and capital to build the capacity to achieve that goal. Our board and staff leadership will be undertaking a strategic planning process over the next few months to determine what this will look like.

This gift will also amplify your support and every donation that comes in the door. Donors can be assured that every dollar given will go right back into our programs rather than being needed to cover overhead costs in administration and fundraising.

Finally, I am thankful to everyone who has continued to believe in our mission, support our programs, and be part of our community. And of course, thank you to MacKenzie Scott and her team for utilizing her resources to follow through her vision for social change. We look forward to continuing to grow as a force for social change for years to come!

Sincerely,

Andrew So
Executive Director & Co-Founder
South Bronx United

Read our Press Release with Yield Giving and Lever for Change