Here’s an impressive statistic: since 1946, Target has been giving 5% of its income through community grants and programs that support education, the arts, social services, and volunteerism. Target’s giving totals $3 million per week—both to local community and national organizations.

Because of the company’s belief that the arts bring communities together, celebrate cultural diversity, and help people see a perspective that may differ from their own,
Target supports arts activities, music festivals, and concerts all across the country. Thousands of children and adults who might not otherwise have access to museums and theaters take advantage of free or reduced admission days, sponsored by Target.

Education is a high priority for Target’s giving programs—because it’s a high priority for the company’s customers (which Target calls “guests”). TO that end, Target seeks programs that combine art with education, such as those bringing arts into schools or that make it affordable for youth and families to experience cultural activities like symphony performances, artists’ workshops, and theater.

Target’s education initiatives put the focus on teachers, classrooms and early childhood reading. Take Charge of Education® and Target Field Trip Grants are national school fundraising programs that awarded more than $18 million to schools across the country since January of this year. Take Charge of Education provided $14.7 million in undesignated funds—so they can be used for whatever school need most. Target Field Trip Grants give 440,000 students the chance to learn outside the classroom—in places as unique as convalescent homes.

Target also sends volunteers to revamp school libraries, filling them with new furniture, shelves, computers and books. Additionally, Target’s 1,700 stores grant $500 book awards to schools in their communities. From cash grants to reading and writing contests, Target places a high priority on getting kids to read early and often!

Target’s belief in strong communities has led to a commitment to fund programs that strengthen the families that every community is made of. Target has chosen three core areas for support—family violence prevention, disaster preparedness, and relief and safeness—and provides badly-needed cash to The Salvation Army, American Red Cross, and the United Way.

Another way Target supports families in need is through providing apartments free of charge to families of children facing major health challenges. Just this week, a 10-year celebration will be held at Target House, a housing facility for families of patients at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. Celebrities such as Shaun White, Scott Hamilton, and Amy Grant will help former and current Target House residents celebrate in style. Families are allowed to stay as long as they need, with some residing in Target House for as long as three years.

The list of Target’s volunteer and community giving goes on. Team members have volunteered literally millions of hours to programs in their communities. The company provides opportunities to team members at each stage of their employment. Delivering food to the needy, responding to disasters, and helping renovate school libraries are just three examples of the thousands of ways Target’s employees work in their towns and cities.

Target embraces service to its communities as a core reason for being in business. Through cash grants, volunteer hours, and innovative programs, the company helps improve the lives of millions of kids and adults across America.

Tags: Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Volunteer Program, Take Charge of Education, Target, Target Field Trip Grants

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