A new neighbor coming to north of the Broad
Nationally-recognized Hilton Head Island nonprofit Neighborhood Outreach Connection (NOC) is coming to Beaufort. NOC works to eliminate poverty’s root causes by addressing education, health and workforce development directly inside the communities they serve. The Beaufort County School District has been in discussion with NOC over the past two years to bring their flagship program, a one-on-one afterschool tutoring and summer program, into two high-need communities North of the Broad: Parkview Terrace and Marsh Point.
“What our model presents is a new partnership in dealing with the challenges we face in educating our children,” explained Dr. Narendra Sharma, Chair of the NOC Board of Directors. “The schools can’t do it alone. Larger organizations like the Beaufort County School District and Neighborhood Outreach Connection will have to work together to address the problems of the 21st Century.”
Proven effective in NOC’s four other locations; this engaging, cost-effective educational program brings technology and teachers directly to students, adding the equivalent of an additional 28 days of school to the year. Teachers work closely with local schools to get struggling students involved in the program.
NOC wants to open its program center for Parkview Terrace and Marsh Point in May, just in time to kick off summer programming. So far, NOC has the support of elected officials, such as Mayor Keyserling and State Senator Tom Davis, the Beaufort County Board of Education and the local business community, among others. The Beaufort County School District, Parkview Terrace and Marsh Point are donating space to run programming and offices. On Monday, NOC and BCSD were also awarded a $163,000 South Carolina Community Block Grant as start-up funding for the new program.
A generous anonymous donor has offered a matching gift of $50,000 to support the new program, which needs $100,000 annually to work with 100 children. The anonymous donor hopes to inspire Beaufort locals to support their neighbors North of the Broad by jumpstarting NOC’s new program center. NOC has currently raised $12,500 toward their matching goal $50,000 fundraising goal. – visit www.noc-sc.org to donate today.
