826 National: Inspiring Under-resourced Students' Creativity and Imaginations

Founded in 2002 by award-winning author Dave Eggers and educator Ninive Calegari, 826 National is a non-profit organization that offers various learning, writing, and arts education programs to under-resourced students through its network of eight tutoring centers. Located in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Ann Arbor, Seattle, Chicago, Boston, and Washington, DC, 826 centers give young people ages 6 to 18 the opportunities to improve their writing skills and explore their creativity. 826 National, which also helps educators get their classes excited about writing, believes that one-on-one attention can enhance learning and that strong writing skills play an important role in future success.

The organization's free programs are designed to engage under-resourced youth, spark their imaginations, and help them realize their full potential. These include after-school tutoring, with students receiving one-on-one assistance with their homework, regardless of subject, at least four days a week. 826 National also hosts field trips, where entire classes visit an 826 tutoring center for a two-hour fun and interactive writing event. Students learn how to compose an original story as a group and go home with personalized books. For those who are unable to drop by an 826 center, the organization sends teams of volunteers to local public schools regularly. Volunteers provide one-on-one help to students with writing projects such as oral histories, school newspaper articles, and college entrance essays. Moreover, 826 National offers several workshops and scholarships, as well as runs the annual Young Authors' Publishing Project, a program that gives students the chance to be professionally published.

Over the years, 826 National has received numerous awards, including the 2010 Jim Henson Community Honor and the 2012 INFORUM 21st Century Visionary Award (presented to co-founder Dave Eggers). Between 2011 and 2012, 826 National accomplished 1,714 after-school tutoring sessions, 756 field trips for 364 schools, 1,024 publishing projects, 180 in-school projects in 88 schools, and 351 writing workshops, serving 31,669 students and 933 teachers.