United States Program

Opening Doors of Opportunity for Everyone
In communities across the U.S., inequities in our society limit options—especially for those with few resources.

The doors of opportunity quickly close for:

• The millions of students who drop out early or graduate from high school unprepared for college, career, and life
  
  
• Any young person or adult without access to the information we take for granted through computers and the Internet
  
  
• Children and families in the Pacific Northwest with unmet basic needs and few connections to get help

Everyone deserves an equal chance to get the skills, tools, and knowledge needed to participate more fully in life. The foundation’s United States Program seeks to work with many public and private partners to reduce inequities by expanding opportunities for those with great need.

Highlights

A Closer Look at Sound Families

More than two-thirds of formerly homeless families successfully transitioned into permanent housing after exiting Sound Families programs. Read more about their successes and challenges in the December 2007 final evaluation summary report. (341 KB PDF)

NYC Grad Rates Nearly Double

Student graduation rates at the 47 new small schools in New York City have increased for the second consecutive year. Read an article in The New York Times.

Keeping Communities Connected

The next step in our U.S. Libraries initiative is helping low-income communities keep computers and the Internet running in their public libraries.