Reality Changers was selected for San Diego Foundation’s Inspire and Enable Award as part of their Annual Report to the Community. This award acknowledges local philanthropists, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies that inspire San Diegans and enable community solutions to improve our region.

Click here to see the acceptance speech from Reality Changers President & CEO, Tamara Craver. Text is below:

On behalf of our families and our team, I would like to thank the San Diego Foundation for this award.

At Reality Changers, we prepare youth to become first-generation college graduates and agents of change in their communities. Starting in the 8th grade, we help students from underrepresented backgrounds graduate from high school, get into college, afford college, graduate, and launch their careers. This past year, we served more than 1,400 young people. 142 of these were high school seniors who just started their first semester of college.

I’d like to share with you a bit about one of our graduating seniors from this past year. Her name is Wendy.

Wendy joined our program in 2019, at the beginning of her sophomore year. At the time, she was struggling in school and her hard-working parents were unable to help her with homework. Wendy had even failed a class. Research shows that failing just one class can make a student 30% less likely to complete high school, especially for students from underserved communities.

At Reality Changers, Wendy received free tutoring and mentorship. She connected with a community of peers and adults who all wanted to help her succeed. She calls this community her “second family.”

After she joined Reality Changers and found her second family, Wendy never failed a class again. In fact, she just started her first quarter at UC Irvine. She is studying education and wants to become an Elementary School teacher.

Just like Wendy, we feel fortunate to have a family of supporters. We are grateful for the volunteers, partners, and donors that work with us to improve education access for our students and equity outcomes for our region. Thank you again to the San Diego Foundation and to all the members of our community. This award is for you.