MacKenzie Scott’s ‘Yield Giving’ Awards $1 Million to New Heights Youth
Venerable Brooklyn Non-Profit Organization Uses Sports to Help Thousands
of Young People Reach Their Physical, Emotional, Social and Academic Potential
NEW YORK – Today, MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving announced Brooklyn’s New Heights Youth, Inc. as one of the Yield Giving Open Call’s awardees working with people and in places experiencing the greatest need in the United States. New Heights received $1 million.
Founded in 2005, New Heights Youth, Inc. is a New York City-based non-profit organization located in Crown Heights, that uses sports to help young people rise to their potential physically, emotionally, socially and academically. Through a variety of after-school, weekend and summer programs, New Heights engages over 1,500 youth annually, the majority of whom represent communities that have historically been excluded from opportunity due to race and/or economic status.
In March 2023, Yield Giving launched an Open Call for community-led, community-focused organizations whose explicit purpose is to enable individuals and families to achieve substantive improvement in their well-being through foundational resources.
“We are enormously grateful to Mackenzie Scott and Yield Giving for recognizing New Heights and our value to young people in New York City. This grant comes at an especially exciting time for us as we are completing a new strategic plan that will widen our reach and deepen our impact in the community. In the coming months, New Heights will launch several new initiatives for hundreds of additional youth and their families – and this funding will be the driving force behind our growth,” said Ted Smith, Executive Director, New Heights Youth, Inc.
The Open Call received 6,353 applications and initially planned for 250 awards of $1 million each. In the Fall of 2023, organizations top-rated by their peers advanced to a second round of review by an external Evaluation Panel recruited for experience relevant to this cause, and underwent a final round of due diligence. In light of the incredible work of these organizations, as judged by their peers and external panelists, the donor team decided to expand the awardee pool and the award amount.
“We are excited that our partnership with Yield Giving has resonated with so many organizations,” said Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change. “In a world teeming with potential and talent, the Open Call has given us an opportunity to identify, uplift, and empower transformative organizations that often remain unseen.”
More information on the Yield Giving Open Call and other initiatives can be found at www.leverforchange.org.
Photo credits: New Heights NYC