RTB Receives $25k Spark Grant from Michelson 20MM to Reimagine Emergency Aid
For single-parent students, even a minor emergency can mean the difference between enrollment and withdrawal. At Raise The Barr (RTB), we believe it shouldn’t have to.
Imagine your dream is to become a nurse, and you also happen to be a single parent. Each weekday, you drive your ten-year-old to school on the way to your 9am biology or anatomy course at your local community college. Then, you spend the next 7 hours balancing lectures with a work-study job on campus. On Saturdays, drop off your daughter at the community center, then you swing by the nearby grocery store and laundromat to complete weekly errands while she takes her swim lessons. In the evenings, the two of you sit side-by-side at the kitchen table, completing homework until it’s time for you to start preparing dinner.
You’ve perfected this routine over the years, and it flows quite seamlessly—that is, until you start having car trouble.
One day, you’re on one of these regular commutes when your car brakes begin to squeak. At the auto repair shop, you learn that the brakes need to be replaced immediately—and it’ll cost you nearly $850. If you dig into your savings to cover this cost, you run the risk of falling behind on rent or groceries. On the other hand, if you don’t cough up the money to repair your car, you’ll have trouble getting your daughter to school each day, not to mention making it to your own classes and job on time. An unexpected bill of $850 is enough to upend your entire life.
At RTB, we distribute emergency grants to prevent unexpected emergencies like this from threatening the enrollment status of single-parent students. Since 2018, we have awarded one-time funding to scholars facing emergency situations that might impede their ability to continue attending class or work.
This year, we are partnering with Michelson 20MM Foundation to make emergency support more accessible to single-parent families throughout California. Similarly to RTB, Michelson is committed to making higher education and employment opportunities more accessible to everyone. This January, we were honored with the $25k Spark Grant, which will give us the opportunity to make emergency support more accessible to single-parent families throughout the state. With Michelson’s support, we aim to:
Standardize emergency aid intake, eligibility, and outcome tracking across participating campuses
Strengthen coordination between emergency aid, CalWORKs, housing supports, and public benefits navigation
Analyze retention, persistence, and stabilization outcomes associated with emergency aid usage
Single parent or not, we all face emergency expenses we don’t see coming—and one unexpected car repair should not derail a parent’s path to a nursing degree. With more structured and integrated emergency aid, it won’t have to.
