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Annual Report 2006

Equal Opportunities Program

The program assists local organizations working to enhance access to education for young people from small towns and impoverished communities, as well as those striving to counteract social exclusion of physically and mentally disabled children by providing them with education and personal development opportunities.

Local Scholarship Programs

The project, carried on from 2000, aims at assisting the establishment of an alternative scholarships system for youth from low-income families based on local resources and activity. In its framework, we support local NGOs which run youth scholarship programs in their areas with the support of local government and local businesses.

We offer organizations willing to run scholarship programs technical assistance in establishing and operating scholarship funds, building local coalitions, fund raising and management, cooperation with the media. The local organizations raise money for scholarship grants from local businesses, individual donors and local governments. Once a year, the organizations receive matching grants to supplement monies they have raised locally. Local scholarship programs run by the organizations operate on the basis of their own charters, drawn up by special scholarship committees. The scholarships awarded by them, varying between PLN 50 and 250 per month, are used to purchase textbooks and learning aids, to pay for lodging, extra courses, commuting to school, etc. The decision to award a scholarship is usually based on the applicant's school record and the financial standing of her/his family, sometimes also involvement in the work for community and achievements in other non-academic pursuits.

In September 2006, thanks to the cooperation with Nestlé Poland two new organizations joined the project from places where Nestle has its locations. These were: Education for Future Association from Namysłow and Students Sport Club Dąbrówka-Kargowa from Kargowa. Scholarship grants made by these organization in the past year were financed exclusively from Nestle donation.

In 2006, the project involved 38 organizations from 16 provinces. They raised PLN 890 696 in their communities. This amount increased by grants awarded by the Stefan Batory Foundation from donations by companies, institutions and private donors in the total amount of PLN 636 000 supported 1482 monthly scholarships for children and youth in the school year 2006/2007.

Rainbow Academy

This project targets organizations that operate in small towns and rural areas and engage in activities to assist mentally and physically disabled children. The ultimate purpose is to improve the children's opportunities for education, and to overcome their social exclusion. We offer these organizations grants for activities that make it easier for disabled children to acquire knowledge and skills, enable them to participate in cultural and artistic events, and contribute to integration with their peers and community

In 2006, we made grants to NGOs conducting therapeutic and educational activities for disabled children in locations with a population below 40 000. We funded 36 therapeutic and integration activity projects that involved cooperation with the local community, the participation of volunteers, parents and assistants of disabled children.

Our Own Cartoon

The Friends of Chodzież Association invited disabled youth to take part in the Our Own Cartoon project. Participants produce a cartoon starring their own character. To prepare for the production well, they attend a number of workshops to become familiar with scriptwriting, scene setting, photography, animation, sound, and editing. The work on the cartoon will be documented using a camera. Stills from the process will be shown at a special exhibition, while a movie will be presented in the Chodzież Culture Center and passed on to the regional cable television and the local branch of the public television TVP3. Unusual Week in the Streets of Lesko Street shows, acting classes, painting, or even being carried around by stilt walkers — this is what the past few days looked like in Lesko. Animators and actors of the Flag&Art theater from Hrubieszów organized an outdoor theater workshop for participants of any age, showing that learning to act can be a lot of fun. There were also street shows and other fun activities, even such as dripping, i.e. pouring liters of paint on the canvass. The workshop was part of the artistic project Bridge — The Movement Theater, financed by the Stefan Batory Foundation through the program Equal Opportunities — Rainbow Academy. Gazeta Wyborcza — Rzeszów, August 7, 2006

Donors Advised Funds

Apart from running its own grant programs, the Foundation also administers funds entrusted by companies and individuals. These funds, one-year, multi-year and perpetual, are created on the basis of donation agreements between a company or an individual donor and the Foundation. On the basis of the agreement the Foundation uses the entrusted funds to support projects, institutions and social initiatives that fall in the sphere of its program activity and the donor's interest.

Commercial Union Charitable Fund

For the past eleven years, the Foundation has been cooperating with the insurance company Commercial Union Poland, which has been providing us with donations to support the disabled, children and youth. In 2006, from the Commercial Union's funds we made 23 grants for integration and education of disabled children projects (see the list of grants of the Equal Opportunity Program — Rainbow Academy section). The Foundation manages also Commercial Union Charitable Fund used to finance endeavors identified by the donor, involving support for the sick and needy people, as well as support to educational projects (see the list of grants of the Equal Opportunity Program — Donors Advised Funds).

M Fund

In 2002, thanks to a donation made to the Foundation by a private donor, an endowed donor advised Fund was established. Income generated by the Fund is annually spent for various forms of assistance to needy children. In 2006, M Fund earnings were used to finance or co-finance 13 grants for integration and education of disabled children projects (for the list of grants see Equal Opportunity — Rainbow Academy section). Moreover, pursuant to the wish of the M Fund founder, a part of the annual earnings on the investment of the Fund was allocated to the purposes identified by the donor involving support for sick children and children in need of care. In 2006, 26 grants were made of the value of PLN 36 000 (for the list of grants see Equal Opportunity Program — Donors Advised Funds).

Helen and Peter Maxwell Fund

Since 2004, the Foundation has been receiving an annual sum of USD 30 000 from Mr. and Mrs. Maxwell from the United States for the Windows of Opportunity Program, aiming to provide equal educational opportunities for children and youth from Siedlce town and county. The program is run by the Hans Ch. Kofoed Association for Social Welfare, Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration in Siedlce, with the participation of Siedlce county and town local governments. In the framework of the program, financed in 2/3 from Maxwell Fund resources, an annual competition is organized for the purchase of computers for primary and junior high schools in Siedlce town and county. In 2006, thanks to the program, 12 schools received 57 computers, 38 of them were bought from the Maxwell Fund.

Beata Pawlak Fund

This fund was established from a donation of PLN 99 390,69 bequeathed by the deceased Beata Pawlak, Polish journalist and writer killed in a terrorist attack on Bali in 2002. As requested by the donor, the Fund awards an annual prize to an author of an article or publication on foreign cultures, religions and civilizations (for more see the Civil Society Program section).

Program costs

Grants: PLN 1 050 420
Trainings: PLN 18 051,32
Operating costs: PLN 26 447,71
TOTAL: PLN 1 094 919,03

Grants

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