Amid exponential growth in its community impact and operational needs, the Barancik Foundation hired Jessica Polk for the newly created position of operations manager. In 2018, the Foundation increased its grantmaking by 50 percent and launched three new initiatives—First 1,000 Days Sarasota County, Teacher Recruitment|Retention and Mental Health Environmental Scan.
In August, Sarasota lost one of its most beloved (and loving) residents, Steve Seidensticker. Steve, a longtime restaurateur and philanthropist, died of cancer at the age of 65.
A memorial fund has been established at Gulf Coast Community Foundation. Contributions will benefit Miss Susie’s Newtown Kitchen, the community-based restaurant and redevelopment project in north Sarasota that Steve conceived to give the Newtown community an economic engine and place for food and fellowship.
Sarasota’s coastal environment and the visitors it attracts provide social and economic value to our community, but many of the attractive features of our local ecosystem are now threatened by human activities. Research is key to our ability to understand threats like climate change and, more importantly, to mitigate them.
Chuck Barancik, his wife, Margery, and their three children started the Charles and Margery Barancik Foundation with $100 million in April 2014. Since then, the foundation has awarded nearly $29 million across 255 grants and initiatives. A Chicago native, Barancik had a genius for buying and developing companies in industries as diverse as bakeries, fire prevention and office furniture. Most of these acquisitions and their employees were spread out across the country, and yet Barancik ran the operations out of his Chicago office with only three other people. Active, engaging and razor sharp, Barancik says his family and his philanthropy are what he cherishes most.
Reading Recovery helps struggling first-grade students achieve grade-level reading in just 12 to 21 weeks. The internationally acclaimed literacy intervention program is in its third year in Sarasota County and over 400 students have completed Reading Recovery. Thanks to a rapid growth plan funded by the district and philanthropy, all 23
“The biggest thrill is to hear kids say things like ‘learning is fun,’ and ‘I like finding information and doing something with it,’ ” reports a 6th grade science teacher. This teacher’s excitement joins a choir of praise for the impact of an initiative that has transformed Sarasota County middle
The Florida State College of Medicine Science Students Reaching Instructional Diversity and Excellence (SSTRIDE) prepares students for careers in science and medicine. The program began last year at McIntosh Middle and leads rising 8th and 9th grade students on an science-focused academic path through high school. Barancik Foundation helped launch
We hosted Nancy Lublin, the founder of Crisis Text Line, who shared her organization’s story about using data and technology to help individuals in crisis. Crisis Text Line is the world’s largest mental health database and its crisis intervention volunteers are assisted by an algorithm able to gauge the texter’s
