English At Large Awarded Cummings Foundation Sustaining Grant

English At Large is one of the local nonprofits sharing in Cummings Foundation’s $25 million grant program in 2019. The Woburn-based organization has been awarded a $200,000 Sustaining Grant, to be disbursed over 10 years. Maureen Willis, Executive Director and Csilla Tambor, Director of Volunteer Engagement, represented the nonprofit at a May 2 awards night at TradeCenter 128 in Woburn.

English At Large (EAL) provides free, relevant and accessible volunteer-delivered programs to adult immigrants in 21 communities in Greater Boston. Services include One-to-One Tutoring, Conversation Groups, Beginner English and job readiness training and support provided through the Career Access Lab. These programs help local immigrants acquire the knowledge and skills they need to take advantage of opportunity, achieve their potential, and fully engage in life in the United States.

“We are truly honored and excited to be selected for a Cummings Foundation Sustaining Grant,” comments EAL Executive Director Maureen Willis. “This level of funding is a real game-changer for EAL, as it empowers us to build upon the success of our core programs and plot a strategy for growth.”

Use of Grant funds will be used by the organization to sustain and expand programs that address the growing need for high-quality English language instruction for local immigrants facing barriers to achieving their life goals.

The Sustaining Grants initiative builds on Cummings Foundation’s 100k for 100 program. First offered in 2012, $100k for 100 annually awards $10 million through multi-year grants of $100,000 each to 100 nonprofits that are based and primarily serve Essex, Middlesex and Suffolk counties. Grant recipients that received their final grant disbursements in 2018 were automatically considered for $15 million in Sustaining Grants.

“We introduced Sustaining Grants to help alleviate the constant burden of fundraising so nonprofit professionals can spend more of their limited time and resources on actually providing services,” said Christina Berthelsen, grants manager at Cummings Foundation.

Cummings Foundation has awarded nearly $250 million to date in Greater Boston alone. Funds are generated through commercial properties that are owned by, and operated for the sole benefit of, Cummings Foundation. All of its buildings are managed pro bono by Woburn commercial real estate firm Cummings Properties.

Sustaining Grants winners were selected primarily by a 33-member volunteer committee, which included former state legislators, CEOs of local companies, and a retired justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, among many others. Committee members met with each nonprofit twice to learn how the $100k for 100 funds helped to advance its mission, and how it might put a 10-year grant to use.

View the complete list of 50 Sustaining Grants winners at www.CummingsFoundation.org. An additional 100 winners will be announced in June through the $100k for 100 program.

About English At Large

Founded in 1970, English At Large is a nonprofit that provides individual and small group instruction through a volunteer network to adult immigrants and other newcomers who want to acquire English language skills as they adapt to life in the United States. Our vision is that newcomers will develop the English language skills and acquire the cultural knowledge needed to fully engage in their communities and fulfill their life goals. Through the service of 215 volunteers in 21 communities in Greater Boston, our One-to-One Tutoring, Conversation Group, Career Access Lab and Beginner English Programs serve almost 500 immigrants each year. Learn more at www.englishatlarge.org

About Cummings Foundation

Woburn-based Cummings Foundation, Inc. was established in 1986 by Joyce and Bill Cummings and has grown to be one of the three largest private foundations in New England. The Foundation directly operates its own charitable subsidiaries, including New Horizons retirement communities in Marlborough and Woburn. Its largest single commitment to date has been to Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. Additional information is available at www.CummingsFoundation.org