FAMILIES COUNT - National Honors Program
FAMILIES COUNT: THE NATIONAL HONORS PROGRAM celebrates organizations that improve the odds for vulnerable children by helping them have what they need most—strong, capable and economically successful families.
The 50 organizations honored since the program began in 2000 connect families to the resources, supports and opportunities they need to succeed. FAMILIES COUNT honorees provide compelling evidence that we can change outcomes for children in some of the nation’s toughest communities when we help their families succeed.
Millions of low-income families continue to find it extremely difficult to get by and get ahead, even as they work harder and longer than ever before. Their communities too often lack the most basic elements that allow parents to fulfill family aspirations: strong social networks, good schools, safe streets, responsive services, affordable housing, and jobs that provide adequate support and opportunities for advancement.
These families are not without hope because they are not without champions—the people and organizations working side by side with them every day. The FAMILIES COUNT honorees remind us that the continuing challenge for our nation is less about know-how than it is about will—the willingness to care enough and do enough so that all families can realize their dreams for their children.
FAMILIES COUNT recognizes the honorees who show countless other organizations how to become partners and allies by helping families to:
- Acquire skills that enhance family success through parenting classes, financial education, family literacy programs and English language classes;
- Find and keep jobs with good pay and benefits, increase earning power, pursue promising career opportunities and build assets;
- Access affordable and high-quality services such as health care and child care; and
- Connect with formal and informal networks of support that enrich the social fabric of communities and allow parents to help one another succeed.
FAMILIES COUNT: THE NATIONAL HONORS PROGRAM strengthens the capacity of these organizations to engage families in this strategic work through unrestricted awards of $500,000, paid over five years.
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