Volunteering to Prevent School Dropouts

UST Global, which provides end-to-end IT services and solutions, announced plans to expand its corporate social responsibility (CSR) program by supporting Communities In Schools, the largest dropout prevention organization in the United States.

The company's CSR philosophy is that it "has an obligation to help those less fortunate and to make a meaningful difference in the communities in which it operates." There are two main issues which it focuses on: health and education. Communities In Schools fits that second focus perfectly.

That organization was founded in 1977 and works in more than 3,200 K-12 public schools, with 1.2 million young people receiving services directly through the nonprofit group on an annual basis. UST Global's goal is to have 10 percent of its U.S. associates volunteering with Communities In Schools within the first year, increasing both the percentage of participants and the number of hours volunteered after that initial year.

With UST Global operating in 20 states where the nonprofit group is active, the company's employees should have plenty of opportunities to be tutors or mentors, and hopefully make a difference in the lives of at-risk students. And for those of you who have kept up with this blog, you may remember my blog about Cisco giving $4.5 million to the Whole School, Whole Child program, which targets the prevention of high school dropouts. Clearly, more companies are realizing the importance of education and wanting to make sure students stick with it.

You can find out more about UST Global's social responsibility programs here.

(Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)