With strong support from businesses and individuals in Washington, DC, Fight For Children is an independent not-for-profit organization that recognizes, promotes, and cultivates quality education for low-income children in Washington, DC. Fight For Children also addresses the critical link between good health and improved academic performance.

History

Joseph E. Robert, Jr., launched Fight For Children in 1990 to give back to the community in which he and his employees lived and worked. Since that time, Fight For Children and its signature fundraising events, Fight Night and School Night, have raised $82 million for programs that serve low-income children.

Programmatic Initiatives

Promoting Quality Education. Fight For Children’s Quality Schools Initiative recognizes high quality programs that improve student achievement in public, charter, and independent schools in Washington, DC. Three winning schools each year receive a cash award to use toward sharing their effective practices with their peers in the education community. Fight For Children's School Night event raises funds to support this program. In partnership with GreatSchools, Fight For Children also publishes the DC School Chooser, a user-friendly guide to schools in the District of Columbia. Fight For Children uses the Chooser to train parents to understand measures of quality to help them decide which school is most appropriate for their children.

Making Strategic Grants. Using proceeds from its annual Fight Night event, Fight For Children supports local non-profit organizations that provide education and healthcare services and that demonstrate measurable positive results in improving the lives of children. Since its founding, Fight For Children has invested $31 million in over 155 local organizations, including 16 organizations we are currently supporting.

Ensuring School Readiness. Fight For Children recently concluded a research project into how best to address the challenges facing low-income kids with the publication of Every DC Child a Champion. This report provides a framework for Fight For Children’s future efforts in early childhood education and wellness. Fight For Children has concluded that it will undertake a comprehensive campaign to ensuring that all DC children, particularly those in low-income communities, are healthy and ready for school. Fight For Children is currently designing a multi-faceted program that will bring together program and funding partners from government, the non-profit and corporate sectors, and foundations.

To learn more, visit Making a Difference »