Social Venture Partners Boston makes grant to Boston Debate League
Press Release
May 13, 2009

Boston nonprofit capacity-building organization to partner with Boston urban schools-focused Boston Debate League

(BOSTON) - May 13, 2009 - Social Venture Partners Boston (SVP Boston), a philanthropic venture fund that supports nonprofit organizations in the greater Boston area, has awarded a $30,000 grant to the Boston Debate League. The grant is renewable for three years. The capacity-building grant is further leveraged by the commitment to provide volunteer expertise, which is essential to SVP Boston's approach and will help Boston Debate League to develop its infrastructure, constituency, marketing, and outcomes measurement processes.

Founded four years ago, the mission of the Boston Debate League (BDL) is to help the Boston Public Schools (BPS) build a culture of academic and intellectual excellence by extending the social and academic benefits of debate to as many Boston Public Schools students as possible.

SVP Boston invests in organizations that have solutions to some of Boston's most significant public schooling challenges. Today, nearly half of Boston high school students fail to graduate from the city's non-exam public high schools in four years. The numbers are significantly less for males and for English language learners.

BDL directly addresses Boston's low high school graduation rates, as well as other challenges such as college access. In the words of one high school student from the Josiah Quincy Upper School, "My first few years in high school, my attendance was pretty poor and my grades were awful. I thought about dropping out. Debate changed my life. Debate is the reason my grades and attendance have dramatically improved. Debate has made me a much better reader, so now I like doing my homework. Debate makes me feel good about myself and feel that I can succeed in anything I want to. I can't wait for college next year."

Urban Debate Leagues like the BDL have a track record, proven in twenty-five cities over more than ten years, of improving academic performance, attendance, high school graduation, college matriculation, and lifelong achievement of the participating students, who come primarily from low-income and minority backgrounds.

Since coming to Boston schools, the BDL has grown from a small, volunteer-driven organization to a successful education initiative embraced by senior BPS leadership, including the Superintendent and the Boston School Committee. Thanks to a significant investment from Boston Public Schools, the BDL has expanded to eight high schools and, in the last year alone, tripled the number of participating students.

"We have had such a positive impact on the lives of the BPS students who are competing in the league, and we are starting to see a small change in the overall culture in some of our member schools," says Steve Stein, Executive Director of the Boston Debate League. "Working with SVP Boston Partners is exactly what we need to help us develop into an organization that has the capacity to work with all BPS students in all of our schools. This partnership will be the difference between just a few students in a few schools having access to the debate league and thousands of students from all of our schools benefiting from this life transforming activity."

"SVP Boston selected Boston Debate League because it offers an innovative and proven approach to addressing some of Boston's most pressing educational concerns. Its focus is strongly aligned with the goals of SVP Boston and its staff and board have demonstrated a strong commitment to ambitious growth and development," says Marjorie Ringrose, Executive Director of SVP Boston. "SVP Partners bring skills that will bolster the organizational strengths of the Boston Debate League."

SVP Boston is an affiliate of SVP International (SVPI), which supports the shared mission and 24 affiliates across North America and Japan.

Contacts:
For SVP Boston:
Marjorie Ringrose
mringrose@svpboston.org
(617) 312-3772

For Media Inquiries:
Kate Casolaro
kcasolaro@rasky.com
(617) 443-9933 x338

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