Statements
Mission
The Nashville Chamber Public Benefit Foundation supports the work of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce by coordinating, facilitating and encouraging joint public and private efforts to improve the quality of public education in Middle Tennessee, developing and disseminating information to public and private decision makers concerning the quality of public education and the costs and benefits of improving the quality of public education and to coordinate and encourage joint public and private efforts to combat community deterioration in Middle Tennessee. Through coordinating cooperative efforts with business, government, community leaders, non-profits and other entities, the Foundation identifies problems and creates workable solutions in the areas of talent development including early childhood and K-12 education initiatives, post-secondary education attainment and workforce development in conjunction with area schools and colleges. The combined efforts of the Foundation and the Board of Directors provides a strategic funding plan for operations and projects that ensures the Foundation as a driving force of influence and change in bolstering the Nashville region's economic prosperity and a thriving, world-class city.
Background
The Nashville Chamber Public Benefit Foundation a 501(c)(3) was chartered in 1990 by the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce. The Foundation's purpose is "To engage community leadership in removing barriers to economic prosperity for all." The Foundation identifies problems and creates workable solutions in the areas of education and talent development including early childhood and K-12 education initiatives, post-secondary attainment and workforce development in collaboration with area schools, post-secondary institutions, community based organizations, and employers.
Impact
The Nashville Chamber Public Benefit Foundation has successfully positioned itself as a trusted leader in the facilitation of efforts involving early childhood literacy, k-12 education, workforce development, and other economic challenges. Our unique ability to partner with government, business, non-profits and the community has created a collaborative environment that brings stakeholders together to identify a shared vision, identify solutions and organize to achieve outcomes. Since 2003 the Foundation has worked specifically on workforce retention and development efforts. This includes producing the Chamber Education Report, which provides committee-based recommendations for Metro Nashville Public Schools based on conversations with school and district leaders, school visits, and analysis of data. Implementation of those recommendations is also monitored and reported on by Foundation staff. Beginning in 2016 Foundation staff worked with the Nashville Literacy Collaborative as part of a working group to create the 'Blueprint for Early Childhood Success,' which includes 29 recommendations for early childhood initiatives. These include strategies for addressing salient issues within the district such as the needs of families and kids ages 0-3, improving quality and access to pre-k, tackling chronic absenteeism, and increasing literacy rates across Metro schools. The Foundation has also worked closely with the Academies of Nashville since their creation in 2006, including a partnership with YouScience, which provides all incoming freshmen with personal career assessment testing services. Students can then use their identified aptitudes and interests at the annual 'My Future. My Way.' career fair, bridging their aptitudes with directly related workforce trajectories. The twelve Academies each offer students unique career and technical pathways nested within traditional academics. In addition, students can earn industry certifications, dual credit and International Baccalaureate designations. The newest iteration of these initiatives is the addition of a staff position specifically for facilitating business and education partnerships. This individual has been tasked with developing and implementing initiatives that create greater collaboration between the region's secondary and post secondary schools and employers in order to better align school curriculum with the needs of the workforce. They will also be creating career pathway partnerships between secondary and post secondary institutions and regional employers to guide graduating high schoolers into programs that prepare them for high-growth, high-demand career fields.
Needs
Support is needed to assist in funding current and new initiatives, including projects that are the result of collaborations creating solutions to workforce retention, and skills development. Workforce shortages in the area are growing specifically in high needs area such as IT, health care, construction and hospitality services among others. It is imperative that we continue our collective efforts to solve some of the problems that create barriers to prosperity for all.
Service Categories |
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| Primary Category: | Community Improvement, Capacity Building - Community Coalitions |
| Secondary Category: | Education - Higher Education |
| Tertiary Category: | Education - Elementary & Secondary Schools |
Areas Served
The Public Benefit Foundation serves the Nashville, Franklin, Murfreesboro Metropolitan Statistical Area.
| TN - Cannon |
| TN - Hickman |
| TN - Smith |
| TN - Davidson |
| TN - Wilson |
| TN - Cheatham |
| TN - Dickson |
| TN - Maury |
| TN - Montgomery |
| TN - Robertson |
| TN - Rutherford |
| TN - Sumner |
| TN - Williamson |
