Voya Foundation Launches New Program to Boost Graduation Rates

NEW YORK, Jan. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), announced today a new approach to giving that is designed to help more students graduate from high school prepared for success in college and their future careers. The new program will focus on improving high school success and college/career readiness for students at risk of dropping out of school. The program will support innovative approaches to education that encourage greater parental involvement. Local and national grant recipients will be selected through a Request for Proposal (RFP) process that opens today. 

"Voya Foundation has always focused its efforts on initiatives that are vital to the well-being and future of our communities — and education is the cornerstone of that commitment," said Angela Harrell, head of Voya Foundation and Voya Financial's Office of Corporate Responsibility. "Supporting innovative programs that engage parents in achieving the goal of on-time high school graduation rates is a natural evolution of Voya Foundation's community support. Not only are we surrounded every day by colleagues who are parents, but we're also so proud to serve them as clients with our products and services like our 529 college savings plans. This new push by the Foundation further integrates that trend into the way we give back to our communities."

After conducting extensive research to identify valuable metrics that can increase high school graduation rates, Voya Foundation determined parental involvement in youth and high school education is a key factor that can help address the challenge of high school dropout rates. Many corporations focus on graduation rates; science, technology, engineering and math education (STEM); attendance; and various other important factors that influence high school success. Far fewer corporate foundations, however, are focused on including parents in the process. 

Interested organizations must submit an application by March 19, 2016, by filling out the RFP on the company's Children's Education Corporate Responsibility page on its website. Finalists will be selected by April 15, 2016, at which point they will be presented to the Voya Foundation board. Selected programs are scheduled to be announced at the end of the summer. 

Media Contact:
Jeanne LaCour, Voya Financial
(212) 309-8949
Jeanne.LaCour@voya.com

About Voya Foundation
Voya Foundation's mission is to improve the quality of life in communities where Voya Financial^® operates and its employees and customers live. Voya Foundation provides grants and establishes signature partnerships in the areas of financial literacy and children's education and fosters employee engagement to deepen our positive impact on the community. For more information, visit www.voyafoundation.com.

About Voya Financial^®
Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), helps Americans plan, invest and protect their savings — to get ready to retire better. Serving the financial needs of approximately 13 million individual and institutional customers in the United States, Voya is a Fortune 500 company that had $11 billion in revenue in 2014. The company had $450 billion in total assets under management and administration as of September 30, 2015. With a clear mission to make a secure financial future possible — one person, one family, one institution at a time — Voya's vision is to be America's Retirement Company^TM. The company is equally committed to conducting business in a way that is socially, environmentally, economically and ethically responsible — Voya has been recognized as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies, by the Ethisphere Institute, and as one of the Top Green Companies in the U.S., by Newsweek magazine. For more information, visit voya.com or view the company's 2014 annual report. Follow Voya Financial on Facebook and Twitter @Voya.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160118/323105 

 

SOURCE Voya Financial, Inc.