About – Keene Housing Kids Collaborative

Our Mission

Keene Housing Kids Collaborative is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization serving kids that live in housing owned or managed by Keene Housing, including Housing Choice voucher holders. We also serve kids in select Southwestern Community Services (SCS) housing properties in Keene (CitySide and Keene Highlands), Swanzey (Swanzey Township) and Winchester (Woodcrest). Our mission is building the foundation for successful adulthood. We do this by giving kids access to opportunities and experiences in the community that will help them gain confidence, have fun, learn, get ready for kindergarten, do well in elementary school, and exit high school with the tools that will help them become economically independent adults.

Why does it matter?

Research indicates that children’s economic mobility is linked to their parents income with 65% of kids born into poverty staying there through adulthood.

According to ExpandED Schools, kids who are born into poverty are less likely to experience the same kinds of enriched learning — such as preschool, summer camp or after-school activities — as their middle class peers. By 6th grade, this gap can add up to 6,000 hours of lost learning. To put that in perspective, 6,000 hours is the equivalent of five years in the classroom. You can read more here and watch the video below.

Our Values

We believe…
– The experiences of childhood shape adulthood
– Investing in children is investing in the future of our community
– All children deserve the chance to reach their maximum potential
– Partnering with parents is critical to our success
– There is power in collaboration

How To Partner With Us

The community benefits when all children have an equal chance to be an active part of that community.

We believe kids, wherever they live, should be part of the community, not apart from the community. That’s why we don’t have centralized programming on site at Keene Housing properties. Instead, we partner with community organizations that are already providing excellent programming for kids. If you are an organization that serves kids, works with kids, advocates for kids or cares about kids, we would love to partner with you.

If you are interested in collaborating, please contact us. Phone: (603) 283-5464 Email: [email protected].

Testimonials

“This program levels the playing field for our family.” – Parent

“Her grades have skyrocketed!” – Parent

“It’s made a big difference in how she interacts with the world.” – Parent

What Partners are saying….

“We adore the work the Kids Collaborative does and are proud to be a part of what they offer.” – Sadie Butler, White Crane Martial Arts

“I see reverberations of the work that the Kids Collaborative is doing in all areas of my interactions with children.” – Emily Hartshorne, Principal, Fuller Elementary School

Annual Reports

2021 Annual Report Header

We are grateful for the support of our donors, sponsors, funders, volunteers and supporters that have helped us connect our children to opportunities and experiences that help build a foundation to access a successful adulthood. Review highlights and more in our Annual Reports:

Impact & Evaluation

KHKC has an agreement (with parent permission) with the Keene School District to receive standard educational data about KHKC students. We are analyzing de-identified KHKC data to determine the impact of KHKC activities on educational outcomes, conducted for the purpose of program assessment and improvement. In this phase of the project, Keene State College researchers summarize the KHKC educational variables and compare them to the overall Keene School District data for each grade cohort. Then researchers compare educational outcomes for KHKC students who have participated in key enrichment programs to those who have not.