Jack and Jill Phoenix Chapter Receives $15,000 Community Empowerment Fund Award from Microsoft

Jack and Jill of America, Incorporated, Phoenix Chapter is pleased to announce a $15,000 award from the Microsoft Community Empowerment Fund, managed by the Microsoft Datacenter Community Development team.

“We are grateful for KITABU and the My Kids Read West Valley program and thankful to have Microsoft as a community partner,” said Phoenix Chapter President Joanne Curry.

The award will assist the West Valley in Arizona by supporting KITABU, a community-based literacy program founded by the Arizona Center for African American Children, with the My Kids Read initiative.

The program is designed to improve reading scores of 1st and 2nd graders in elementary schools who are reading below grade level. As Jack and Jill Phoenix’s collaborating partner, KITABU will collect and distribute 25 books to homes of 250 Black and African American first- and second-graders at a public school in Goodyear and El Mirage and other West Valley cities.

KITABU’s proven community-based literacy improvement program, its operation experience and expertise and Jack and Jill’s nearly 70 years of credible commitment and successful delivery of programs and services to African American children globally is a recipe for success. By combiningresources and capabilities, Jack and Jill and KITABU, demonstrates the effectiveness of “capacity through collaboration.”

The Microsoft Community Empowerment Fund, created and managed by Microsoft’s Datacenter Community Development team, is designed to support community-led and prioritized projects, increase collaboration among contributors and award recipients, and develop ecosystems that help deliver common community priorities. Through this approach, Microsoft hopes to achieve long-term, systemic, and holistic outcomes in the communities in which it operates.

“Microsoft is pleased to partner with Jack and Jill of America and support KITABU to improve literacy among Black and African American children,” said Adonis Trujillo, Sr. Program Manager at Microsoft and Datacenter Community Development Lead for Phoenix. “The Microsoft Community Empowerment Fund awards are an important way for the company to contribute to stronger, more resilient communities where our employees live and work.”