An innovative program that breaks the grip of generational poverty is celebrating a quarter century of service. The Jeremiah Program started small, with its initial program launched in Minneapolis in 1998.
Today the program has expanded to nine cities including St. Paul and Rochester in Minnesota. Its success has given it a national reach that extends to thriving Jeremiah Programs in Fargo, Las Vegas, Boston, Baltimore, Brooklyn and Austin, Texas.
Some 3,000 families have been transformed through the Jeremiah Program’s approach, which emphasizes education to change the fates, fortunes and futures of single mothers and their children.
“The Jeremiah Program is a college persistence and workforce development program. We use a holistic approach to help single mothers,” explained Karla Benson Ruttan, executive director, Jeremiah Program St. Paul.
“It’s a two generation approach. We help moms get their education and a career to move them out of generational poverty and into generational wealth building. We know that when we can remove some barriers for moms to get their education, the kids see, this is what we do.”
Earlier this month, the Jeremiah Project celebrated its 25th birthday with “The Bash,” a sparkling gala at the Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel at The Depot. A record setting crowd of 650 corporate sponsors, partners, supporters and volunteers raised almost $800,000 to support the nonprofit’s mission.
In addition to supporting the pursuit of college degrees for its participants, the Jeremiah Program offers family coaching, empowerment and leadership training, career navigation, mentoring and a supportive community of staff and peers.
“We have a sisterhood of women who are working hard,” Ruttan said. “They are brilliant, they are talented. They just need opportunities, access and social capital.”
To learn more about the Jeremiah Project and to donate online, go to JeremiahProgram.org.