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The Impact of
PNC Grow Up Great
Inspiring Brighter Futures
for Kids Since 2004
For more than 20 years, PNC Grow Up Great has helped children from birth to age 5 discover their love of learning. By supporting and delivering engaging programs, experiences and resources, we’re helping to create a world of opportunities for the next generation and beyond.
Local Impact
While PNC Grow Up Great is a coast-to-coast initiative, our goal is to build stronger communities. That’s why the true impact of our initiative is felt on a local level.
Minnesota
ServeMinnesota, the state’s administrator of AmeriCorps programs, designed strategies to strengthen outcomes at Reading Corps sites. PNC funded a Kindergarten Readiness pilot that successfully combined the core features of Pre-K Reading Corps with a more integrated approach to building critical early math skills.
Dallas College
PNC Grow Up Great awarded grants to Dallas College to help early childhood educators serving low-income neighborhoods attain enhanced credentials or a degree.
Southeast Florida
PNC Grow Up Great has provided ongoing grants for the Museum of Discovery & Science STEMobile, an innovative Makerspace on Wheels that delivers free STEM programming to 10,000 young learners in communities throughout Broward County each year.
Phoenix
PNC employees in Northern Arizona designed, built and filled Little Free Libraries that will be housed within PNC Grow Up Great partner Southwest Human Development, the state’s largest nonprofit dedicated to creating a healthy foundation for children from birth to age 5.
Birmingham
More than 300 PNC employees in Northern Alabama came together to assemble more than 36 tricycles and 36 wagons. These treasured items were built to be donated to Child Care Resources, a high-quality early childhood provider and long-standing PNC Grow Up Great partner.
Pittsburgh
Buzzword Pittsburgh launched in 2014 to support families in building their young children’s vocabulary in underserved neighborhoods. This collaborative project initially included the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Carnegie Science Center, Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Festival Opera, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy and Trying Together.
North Carolina Public Pre-K
Jim Hansen, PNC’s regional president for the Eastern Carolinas, facilitated a statewide effort to advance funding for high-quality early childhood education in all parts of the state. Together with SAS and North Carolina business leaders, and using data funded by PNC through the National Institute for Early Education Research, the group set and achieved a goal of having 75% of eligible children enrolled in North Carolina pre-K.
- Minessota
- Dallas
- Southeast Florida
- Phoenix
- Birmingham
- Pittsburgh
- North Carolina
Nature Based Play and Learning
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of PNC Grow Up Great, the PNC Foundation announced $10.2 million in grants with a multi-year focus on outdoor learning, which research suggests offers a wealth of benefits for young children’s learning and development. This included $5.2 million to create or enhance more than 60 nature-based play and learning environments at early childhood education centers, specifically in underserved neighborhoods. View some of these outdoor spaces that emphasize natural surroundings, sensory elements and interactive play areas to foster curiosity and exploration.
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