3rd Annual Collegiate Basic Needs Dialogue

Doors open for check-in, networking, tours of the food pantry and campus closet and continental breakfast at 8 a.m. The program runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and includes a day of collegiate basic needs workshops, keynote address, lunch, and a panel of college presidents Q &A.Keynote Address: Family Scholar House: A 2Gen Framework to End PovertySpeaker: Cathe Dykstra, Chief Possibility Officer, President & CEO, Family Scholar House

Ms. Dykstra will share Family Scholar House's approach to ending poverty and why they believe it is integral to the success of the program and its participants. She will highlight challenges faced, how they have overcome them, and provide insight into current and future initiatives.About Cathe Dykstra

Family Scholar House’s mission is to end the cycle of poverty and transform our community by empowering families and youth to succeed in education and achieve life-long self-sufficiency. Cathe Dykstra has a B.A. in Economics from Wake Forest University, with banking and financial experience and over 20 years of experience in social services with the goal of assisting special populations through innovative approaches to attaining and maintaining self-sufficiency. Under Cathe’s leadership, the organization was born from Project Women, with a bigger, broader vision, and comprehensive, holistic services for both disadvantaged single-parents and their children.

About Family Scholar House

Since its inception, Family Scholar House has expanded programs, now serving 4,000 families annually; expanded geographically to serve other communities in our region; developed and launched the affiliate program to replicate the Family Scholar House model; and completed over $59 million in construction projects in Louisville and $78 million for Kentucky, all of which provide affordable housing for low-income families. Recently, Family Scholar House was honored by the American Planning Association with the 2019 HUD Secretary’s Opportunity and Empowerment Award. In October 2019, Family Scholar House was officially designated by HUD as EnVision Center.

Workshops to include

-financial aid for students with experience in foster care

-low-income housing options for students (parents and nonparents)

-data collection for program funding

-grant writing and fundraising for basic needs programs

-transitioning high school students struggling with basic needs to college

-intersections of mental health, homelessness, and social and emotional learning programs in high schools

- how college staff and administrators can advocate for students' basic needs

*Continuing Education Credits will be offered.* Free student shuttles from Pitt and Point Park

*Students use promo code CBNSTUDENT

* FREE PARKING