Graduation 2009                                                 2009 CIAA State AA Champions

Vision

QFI introduces it's vision for a true wrap-around service in a simple format. CORE 4. We believe that through our Core 4 Philosophy which consist of: Education, Employment, Athletics and Behavioral Health Services we will provide a true "Foundation for Success" to our youth and young adults.

QFI is going green!   QFI is going green and a proud supporter of the Go Green Initative.

*QFI is a member of the National Dropout Coalition (NDC) and proud partner with America's Promise. 

History

Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, The Q Foundation, Inc. (QFI) was founded in 2002 by World Renowned Dropout Expert & Youth Empowerment Coach Stephán “Coach Q” Askew by providing youth athletics, mentoring, tutoring and summer camp programs. Since inception, QFI has expanded its programming and services nationally with a direct focus on youth and young adults ages 14-21.

In 2005, through a collaborating partnership with the Charlotte Workforce Development Board, QFI was awarded the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) contract and began the GED and Employment Assistance program. This program has become the flagship of QFI, helping many Mecklenburg County youth earn their GED and find employment.  Currently, professional training services are being developed, including HVAC, CNA training, customer service & sales certifications, entreprenuership, music engineering, photography and CAN courses.

Because of the highest dropout rate in history, Coach Q felt it was time to make a change and in 2009 and brought to fruition the Mission Possible Mentoring Program with a direct focus; stopping the dropout epidemic that is plaguing our nation's youth. Please visit our mentoring section for more information of Mission Possible.

In 2008  QFI established its first, ever high school athletic program.  This program has awarded hundreds of young people the opportunity to participate in athletics on a high school level that would otherwise become more susceptible to the negative discord of life. 

QFI is always looking to expand it services to better equip the young people we serve therefore in 2009 we proudly added our Behavioral Health Services Division (BHS).  BHS focuses on providing direct services that address behavior and substance abuse issues.

If you have have your high school diploma or GED and need employment training or assistance we want to here from you. *Must be ages 16-21

View the recent feature story of our program on WSOC TV by clicking the link below
http://www.wsoctv.com/video/21480909/index.html

WHY WE DO, WHAT WE DO!

A BLEAK NATIONAL PICTURE: NEARLY 6.2 MILLION DROPOUTS

The dropout crisis impacts all of America regardless of race, religion or gender, but affects men, Blacks, and Hispanics particularly hard.

In 2007, an astounding 16.0% of persons between 16 and 24 years of age (nearly 6.2 million people) were high school dropouts. Among these dropouts, 60.1% were men, 39.9% were women, 18.8% were Black, and 30.1% were Hispanic.

• Male Dropouts Age 16-24: 3,751,081
• Female Dropouts Age 16-24: 2,422,802

In addition:

•  Nearly one in five U.S. men between the ages of 16-24 (18.9%) were dropouts in 2007.
• Nearly three out of 10 Hispanics were dropouts (27.5%), including recent immigrants.
• More than one of five Blacks had dropped out of school (21%)--versus a dropout rate for Whites of 12.2%.
  

Dropout levels among 16-24 year old for North Carolina, Georgia and Virginia were as follows. These figures do not include, an additional number of high school students who dropped out before receiving a diploma by the end of 2007:

LIFELONG ECONOMIC IMPACTS FROM DROPPING OUT

Americans without a high school diploma have considerably lower earning power and job opportunities in today’s workforce. Over a working lifetime from ages 18-64, high school dropouts are estimated to earn $400,000 less than those that graduated from high school.

For males, the lifetime earnings loss is nearly $485,000 and exceeds $500,000 in many large states. Due to their lower lifetime earnings and other sources of market incomes, dropouts will contribute far less in federal, state, and local taxes than they will receive in cash benefits, in-kind transfers, and correctional costs. Over their lifetimes, this will impose a net fiscal burden on the rest of society.

HOW YOU CAN HELP!

Become A part of the Family. It truly takes a village to raise a child and our youth need your help. In order to effectively provide services to those who can’t afford it themselves, community organizations need the support of those who have the time, passion and resources to give.

VOLUNTEER – STRONG TUTORS AND POSITIVE MENTORS NEEDED! Young people need positive role models. This is an opportunity for you to reach back and pull someone forward. If you would like to become a tutor or mentor a youth, or if you would like to discuss other ways to get involved, please contact us today.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS – Community and Faith-based organizations must support one another to be successful. Referring our participants to other service providers and training programs will foster mutually beneficial partnerships between agencies and provide our youth with stronger, comprehensive services.

EMPLOYERS – If you have employment opportunities for youth and/or new GED graduates, then we would love to hear from you. Don’t forget that we do offer paid, temporary work assignments to our WIA youth participants*. Please see our GED & Employment page for more information.

QFI Prom 2009