Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form<\/p>\n
Organization Name: Higher Expectations for Racine County
\nLegal Name (if Different): United Way of Racine County
\nAlso Known As: Higher Expectations for Racine County
\nMailing Address: 300 5th St.
\nCity: Racine
\nState: WI
\nPostal Code: 53403
\nMain Phone: 2625014403
\nMain Fax:
\nOrganization Website: https:\/\/www.higherexpectationsracinecounty.org\/
\nEmployer ID Number: 39-0806349
\nOrganization Tax Status: Fiscally Sponsored 501(3)c<\/p>\n
Proposal Information<\/p>\n
Today’s Date: 3\/2\/2026
\nRequested Amount: $5,000<\/p>\n
Project Title: Parent Grade Level Leads
\nProject Description:<\/p>\n
Parent Grade Level Leads (PGLs) is a family engagement strategy designed to strengthen the connection between home and school so more students in Racine Unified School District can succeed. With only 28% of third graders reading at grade level and 19% of eighth graders meeting math benchmarks, the district faces persistent academic gaps. Breaks in instruction widen these gaps, and many families\u2014especially those navigating economic barriers\u2014struggle to support learning at home under new instructional models. PGLs address this challenge by lifting up parents as partners, leaders, and advocates in their children\u2019s education.<\/p>\n
Each PGL is a parent trained in leadership, collaboration, and data-informed decision-making. Assigned to their child\u2019s grade level, PGLs work closely with teachers, attend grade-level meetings, and help plan and co\u2011facilitate parent engagement activities. Their core role is simple but powerful: helping other parents understand what their children are learning and how to reinforce that learning at home. As one PGL shared, \u201cA parent who helps other parents.\u201d This peer-to-peer model builds trust, reduces barriers to participation, and creates a welcoming bridge between families and school staff.<\/p>\n
The centerpiece of the strategy is monthly Lunch & Learn sessions, where families gather in classrooms to share a meal, learn about grade-level goals, and participate in hands-on activities aligned to classroom instruction. These events have transformed engagement at Knapp Elementary. Attendance has nearly tripled\u2014from 26\u201340% during the Spring 2025 pilot to 74\u201385% in Fall 2025\u2014and surveys show 94\u2013100% of families find the sessions highly engaging and want more opportunities to participate. Parents are stepping into leadership roles, volunteering more often, and expressing greater confidence in supporting their children\u2019s learning.<\/p>\n
Total Project Budget: $85,316<\/p>\n
Other Funding
\nSources For The Project (Committed & Potential): Racine Unfied Partnership Fee, Title I\/IV dollars, Aurora Healthcare Grant, Twin Disc Community Investment<\/p>\n
Project Duration: Sept 2026-May 2027
\nGeographical Area Served: Racine Unified School District
\nAge Group To Be Served: students age 4-11, and their parents 25-50<\/p>\n
Contact Information<\/p>\n
Contact Prefix (Mr,Mrs etc.):
\nContact First Name: Elizabeth
\nContact Last Name: Erickson
\nContact Title: Executive Director
\nContact Phone: 2625014403
\nContact Email: elizabeth.erickson@career2cradle.org<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form Organization Name: Higher Expectations for Racine County Legal Name (if Different): United Way of Racine County Also Known As: Higher Expectations for Racine County Mailing Address: 300 5th St. City: Racine State: WI Postal Code: 53403 Main Phone: 2625014403 Main Fax: Organization Website: https:\/\/www.higherexpectationsracinecounty.org\/ Employer ID Number: 39-0806349 Organization […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-grants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9696","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9696"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9696\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9697,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9696\/revisions\/9697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}