Family Scholar House

Family Scholar House to expand its help thanks to $1.2 million gift

The Courier-Journal, Sunday, May 14, 2012

It was a melancholy Mother's Day five years ago for Laurel Robinson, a single parent who had put college on hold as she juggled two low-paying jobs, two children and chronic lack of sleep.

But this year, Robinson is celebrating a freshly minted nursing degree - and with it, a fresh outlook on life - because of the affordable housing, child care, mentoring and other aid given her by the Family Scholar House, a Louisville nonprofit organization that helps low-income single parents earn their degree...

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The old Maupin Elementary School is getting another chance.

The historic building on Catalpa Street has been a boarded-up blight on the Parkland neighborhood for years. Officials with the Shiloh Baptist Church attempted to renovate the building and turn it into affordable housing for senior citizens, but that project ended in disaster - with very little construction accomplished while Shiloh pastor Henry Humphrey and his grant writer were sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to defrauding the federal government out of nearly $1 million.

Now the city of Louisville and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development are looking to the non-profit Family Scholar House to finish the renovation and convert the school into affordable housing for single-parent college students who are working toward earning their degrees...

Click to read the full Courier-Journal Article

What: Be matched up with a FSH family and provide gifts and the joy of the season.

We will provide size information and needs and wants for the families.

Wrap and label your gifts or please provide wrapping paper, bows, and tape for the

parents to wrap for Christmas morning

Who: Community members who want to support Family Scholar House families

this holiday season

Where: Deliver your gifts to our main Family Scholar House office at

403 Reg Smith Circle

Louisville, KY 40208

For more information, call Rachel Foster at 502.813.3086

Family Scholar House is pleased to announce the publishing of our new blog, Our Stories Matter!  The blog can be found at www.fshstories.wordpress.com and is designed to help readers/subscribers experience the stories of Family Scholar House participants and supporters in ways that further our mission to end cycles of poverty through education!

15 Participants Will Be Recognized For Their Achievements In Pursuing Higher Education

Louisville, KY (May 25, 2011) - Today, Family Scholar House welcomed nearly 100 of the programs closest supporters to help celebrate the newest group of successful graduates at the Gladys and Lewis "Sonny" Bass Louisville Scholar House Campus and Academic Services Center.

"Each and every one of the 15 graduates is actively accomplishing their dreams of higher education," said Cathe Dykstra, President & CEO of Family Scholar House. "Our graduation celebrations are wonderful reminders of how an entire community supports our student parents and that the success of our graduates are a benefit to us all."

The largest graduating class to date, with 15 proud and accomplished single-parent students, each celebrates degrees in various fields.

• Deborah Andrew - Associate of Arts and Science in Business and Administration
• Sharonda Bradley - Associates of Arts
• Karie Brown - Bachelor of Arts
• Rhonda Bynum - Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
• Alisha Clapper - Associate of Science in General Occupational/Technical Studies (GOTS)
• Gennell Cockerham - Associate of Arts
• Faye Duke - Associate of Science
• Shelton McElroy - Bachelor of Arts in Human Services and Counseling
• Toshia Henderson - Associate of Arts
• Jolene Hombecker - Associate of Arts
• Stacy Jones - Master of Science in Social Work
• Elizabeth Scott - Master of Science in Social Work
• Stephanie Sinkfield - Associate of Science
• Tenesha Washington - Associate of Science
• Catina White - Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice

The event also marked the inaugural Mary O'Connor Education Award in celebration of Cathe Dykstra's mother who tragically passed away in April. The award will be given annually to a Family Scholar House student or students who will be the first in their families to graduate from college and who are education majors with a personal commitment to sharing the value of education with others, particularly in special education or with special student populations.

"It was important to give my mother's commitment and love for Family Scholar House a voice." said Dykstra. "She was such an active advocate for education in my life and the lives of our participants, I am moved that her passion will continue in her honor."

ABOUT FAMILY SCHOLAR HOUSE
Family Scholar House is changing lives, families and communities through education. The mission is to end the cycle of poverty by giving single-parent students the support they need to earn a four-year college degree. Since incorporating in 1995, the not-for-profit organization has helped hundreds of families in the Louisville and Southern Indiana region by providing housing and educational support. For more information about Family Scholar House please visit www.familyscholarhouse.org or call 502.584.8090.