We all enjoy a better quality of life when all people have opportunities to succeed. However, there is much evidence showing us that for far too many people, the American Dream is just that — a dream.
In 2017, over 10,000 white families, nearly 7,000 black families, and almost 4,000 Hispanic families were living below the poverty line in Delaware. At the Delaware Community Foundation, we are committed to addressing the issues faced by both parents and children that will lift families out of poverty and build opportunity for all.
And we know that powerful things happen when Delaware works together.
In the fall of 2018, we launched Building Opportunity in Delaware to increase the impact of philanthropy on the most critical issues in our state and reduce the opportunity gap. Through this work, we are fostering discussion and collaboration that will engage our communities and empower giving.
What is the opportunity gap?
The opportunity gap refers to the ways in which structural barriers in our society – educational, economic, and racial – contribute to a growing reality that for some Delawareans it is simply too difficult to achieve educational and economic success. The dream that with hard work we can all get our piece of the American pie is simply not a reality for too many of us.
We, collectively, need to better understand the elements of the opportunity gap in Delaware in order to support solutions that build opportunity for all.
Learn more about how we’re collaborating in the community and how you can get involved.
Join our Building Opportunity mailing list to receive occasional information about ways to get involved.