Running head: BALTIMORE EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP TRUST MISSION AN

Baltimore Educational Scholarship Trust Mission and Services

BALTIMORE EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP TRUST MISSION AN Baltimore Educational Scholarship Trust Mission and Services

There used to be a time when I was against non-profit organizations. I thought they served no purpose. I believed in big business because that was all I grew up around. My environment included banks, restaurants, and hotels. I thought to myself who would need a non-profit organization? Needless to say I was quite young when I had that point of view. As I grew older and honed my skills for investigation and attention to detail, I began to see the bigger picture. I began to see the library I grew up around, the school I went to, and the organizations I took part in were all non-profit organizations. I began to see how the NAACP, The Enoch Pratt Free Library, and St. Marys School were important to me. I even had swimming classes as a young boy at a local non-profit called The League for People with Disabilities. At age 10 or 11, I volunteered during the summertime at my neighborhood branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library. That year I fell in love with the idea of the non-profit organization. I understood how valuable they were to society. A lingering question I had after my exposure to the world of non-profit organizations and foundations was, Where did the funding come from? That question would be answered as my experiences grew. I later found out through additional exposure that funding, capital, financing, and monies came from a wealth of places. These places included donations, grants (city, state, and federal), trusts, endowments, the issue of debt in the form of bonds, and number of other financial resources. Growth and understanding helped me to figure out that I wanted to start my own non-profit someday. I also learned out how important the disciplines of finance, economics, and financial management were to non-profit organizations. The Baltimore Educational Scholarship Trust better known as B.E.S.T. is an organization that helped to fund my middle school and high school education. The mission found on www.besttrust.org notes that B.E.S.T. provides educational opportunities for strongly academically motivated, economically

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disadvantaged African-American students from the Baltimore metropolitan area. (www.besttrust.org, n.d., para. 1). The organization focuses on placing students who they have identified through an

application process in one of the 20 member private, independent, or college preparatory schools. Their services noted on www.besttrust.org include the following: Providing program information Supporting admissions activities at member schools Providing two testing opportunities annually for students Providing a summer enrichment program for newly enrolled B.E.S.T. 6th, 7th, and 8th graders Spearheading financial aid weekend workshops Enabling motivated young learners to access study skills & test taking workshops Providing one-on-one counseling for parents of academically talented children including deadline reminders and help completing documents Providing on-going program support

The organization came into existence in 1987. B.E.S.T. consists of two programs merged together which include The Baltimore Independent School Scholarship Fund and The Baltimore Project for Black Students. The organization has been an integral part of Baltimore City providing a service that usually is handled by private and independent schools. Programs and services offered by the organization dont parallel any others offered by organizations in Baltimore. With parents and students seeking a quality education in a city riddled with poor public education programs B.E.S.T. is poised for growth. B.E.S.T. has increased in alumni and alumnae support and donors.

BALTIMORE EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP TRUST MISSION AN There are two challenges that I foresee regarding the organization. The first challenge includes the ability to compete, and the second is increasing and maintaining the trust fund over aggressive and stressful economic times. B.E.S.T. will have to compete financially and in the realm of human capital. Although a majority of private schools in the greater Baltimore area have signed on to partner with

B.E.S.T., the schools also have separate endowments and scholarships that also have an interest financially and personally in the cities African American students. Moving forward, B.E.S.T will need to increase innovation regarding programs and services offered. If not then organization will quickly fall prey to other private or independent school programs.

BALTIMORE EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP TRUST MISSION AN References www.besttrust.org. (n.d.). http://www.besttrust.org/index.asp?location=about_best