HC4A

Growing Our Impact: School Supplies & A New Opportunity to Serve 🎒🚀

For over a decade, our School Supplies event has defined Serve Where You Live. Here is how we are evolving our impact this year!

🎒 Direct Delivery Update
Thanks to our expanded EPI partnership, backpacks will be pre-packed and shipped directly to school districts at no extra cost. We won't host an August packing event, but this model delivers supplies faster while saving hundreds of volunteer hours.

🚀 "AI with All" No Code Hackathon
As an AmeriCorps 9/11 Day Grant Recipient, we’re bringing 500+ youth together this September to build civic AI tools and prepare laptops for veterans! We need mentors, judges, and planning volunteers.

📖 Learn More About the Event: canva.link/hc4a-hackathon

Whether equipping students with school tools or digital literacy, our purpose stays the same: serving where it matters most. Thank you for your continued support! 💙

HC4A has officially signed the Project Unicorn Pledge! 🦄

We are fully committed to breaking down data silos and adopting secure, interoperable standards for our AI literacy curriculum and digital skills certifications. By ensuring our platforms sync seamlessly with school systems, we are making it easier and safer for school districts to bring high-quality tech education to their students.

Let's build a more connected, data-secure future for K-12 education together! ✨

🚀 That's a wrap on our 5-session Upward Bound AI & Career Lab! 🎓✨

For first-generation and Title I scholars, AI literacy is no longer just an advantage—it is an absolute necessity for economic mobility. We are incredibly proud of these brilliant students for transitioning from passive tech consumers to active, ethical AI architects! 🛠️🧠

This transformative journey was made possible by a dedicated village of mentors and partners. A huge thank you to Gulshan Singh, Dr. Adil Dalal, Shankar Hariharan, Yannik, and Prashant Sheth for your incredible guidance, from teaching critical discernment to mentoring our "AI for Good" mini-hackathon app pitches.

🏙️ Special Thanks to the City of Austin & GTOPS!
Bringing this curriculum to life as a high-touch, in-person model was made possible through the generous support of the City of Austin’s GTOPS capacity program. Your commitment to local digital inclusion truly changes live trajectories! Thank you to Jesse and Dan Martinez for your relentless advocacy. 🌐💙

To our scholars: your brilliant minds and relentless drive are the reason we serve. The future is yours to build! 🌟

75% of Texas jobs require education beyond high school, yet only ~1 in 4 students earn a postsecondary credential. Even more alarming, low-income students, who make up roughly 60% of all enrollments, are the least likely to finish.

At HC4A, we refuse to let local talent go unnoticed. 🎯

While the odds are stacked against them, HC4A scholars are completely breaking the cycle! 💻✨

Look at how we are bridging the gap:

📈 350 Enrollments in career-focused technical tracks.
🕒 1075 Total Hours of dedicated learning and upskilling.
🎓 60% Course Completion Rate- dramatically outpacing traditional open learning benchmarks!

Education beyond high school is essential for job readiness, and your support ensures that our youth don't just enroll, they finish ready to succeed.

Let's keep building a stronger, more equitable workforce. Invest in youth skills today! 🚀

We're honored to share that HC4A has been selected as a 9/11 Day grant recipient!

This fall, we'll be joining the movement to permanently transform the anniversary of 9/11 into America's Day of Doing Good — leading a community service project in honor of the 25th Anniversary.

Big things are *coding* for the community soon. Stay tuned!

AmeriCorps

Free tuition is an incredible open door- but it isn't the finish line. 🏁

Many assume that when tuition is covered, a student’s financial barriers disappear. The reality? Getting into class is free, but the "tools of the trade" are not.

From a $600 clinical nursing kit to $400 specialized welding gear, the out-of-pocket costs of vocational training can force low-income students to drop out before they even begin. True educational equity means addressing these practical, physical barriers head-on.

That is exactly where HC4A’s wraparound services step in. We tackle non-tuition costs, ensuring our scholars actually finish their degrees, master in-demand skills, and step confidently into stable, high-paying careers. 🛠️🩺

Having the right tools shouldn’t stand between a determined student and their future. Let's work together to bridge these hidden gaps!

Imagine the anxiety of the first day of school, compounded by not having a backpack or the required school supplies. For thousands of local children in transitional housing, this is a real barrier to belonging and academic success.

At HC4A, we don't just hand out supplies; we custom-tailor our backpacks to meet exact grade-level curricula, ensuring every student has an equal playing field.

Mark your calendars for August 2nd, 2026! 🗓️

Together, we can bridge this gap and set our local scholars up for a phenomenal year ahead.

Whether you want to donate, volunteer, or help us spread the word, your support matters.

Tap the link to know more details🤝- https://www.facebook.com/share/18AAfhqcNP/

Building the blueprints for tomorrow’s leaders!

Swipe through to see how HC4A’s Digital Inclusion program is helping our incredible scholars level up their skills, map out their career goals, and unlock new opportunities. ➡️

✨ Every student deserves the tools, digital literacy, and community resources needed to bridge the gap between big ambitions and real-world success.

We are incredibly honored to receive the City of Austin GTOPs Core 2026 Grant! A heartful thank you to City of Austin Government for investing in our mission. We are so excited to welcome many more brilliant learners into our program, helping them advance their unique dreams and career goals.

With this vital support, we are looking forward to empowering even more scholars like Sofia, Kaia, and Mairalynn as they pave their paths toward long-term success.
Visit- https://www.hc4a.org/digital-inclusion-program/

Happy 250th Fourth of July! 🎆 As we celebrate our nation’s independence, HC4A remains dedicated to a fundamental liberty: the freedom to learn always.

True freedom begins with opportunity. This Independence Day, let’s unite to secure brighter futures for everyone in our community and break down barriers through the power of education. 📚✨

How are you celebrating today? Let us know below! 👇

🎟️ SAVE THE DATE: The countdown is on!

Get ready for an unforgettable evening of art, emotion, and massive community impact. Mark your calendars for HC4A's "Play for a Purpose" featuring the incredible star-powered musical play, Jaane Pehchaane Anjane, starring Anupam Kher and Swaroop Sampat! 🎭✨

This isn’t just a spectacular night of theater-- it’s a movement with a mission. Every single ticket sold directly fuels HC4A’s vocational scholarships, opening doors to self-reliance for students who need it most.

Bring your family, enjoy a world-class production, and help us turn artistic passion into real-world change. Let's smash our goals and empower the next generation together! 💼📚

🗓️ Save the Date: September 6, 2026
📍 Location: TBA
🎟️ Tickets & Sponsorships: Details dropping soon. Stay tuned!