Annual Report 2010-2011FISCAL YEAR SEPTEMBER 1, 2010 – AUGUST 31, 2011

New generations ofindependent, fulfilledindividuals centered intheir strengths and committedto social responsibility.

learnProject: VISION is a nonprofitorganization with a missionto provide youth of Chicago’sChinatown and Bridgeportcommunities with tools foreducational, personal, andcivic development.

Educational development means fosteringsuccess at school, building effective learningskills, and encouraging appreciation forlearning and knowledge. We offer afterschool homework tutoring, college work-shops, and ACT prep classes.

DEAR FRIENDS,

I am proud to report thatProject: VISION wrapped upanother productive and reward-ing year of programs and servicesdelivered to our community’syouth during 2010-2011! Withthe help of dedicated staff andvolunteers, we continued towork through and overcomethe challenges of being a smallgrassroots organization.

Despite obstacles, what keeps us doingwhat we do is being able to help everystudent that walks through our door. Wecontinue to be encouraged and inspiredby our students every day—when askedto describe what Project: VISION means tothem, one student recognized our “tutors’tireless devotion and dedication to stu-dents,” while another appreciated the“positive and friendly environment thatwelcomes everyone” at the Center.

Education has always been at the founda-tion of Project: VISION’s programs as webelieve it is the key to youths’ success. Thisyear, we reached 60 youths with a varietyof programs. By providing each studentwith an average of 200 hours of free home-work tutoring over the entire school year,we continued to help our students gainconfidence and become stronger learners.

Central to Project: VISION’s mission isthe development of social responsibility inour youths. This year, we continued to bringservice learning and leadership buildingactivities to the forefront of our programs.Fifty youths participated in service projects,completing over 500 hours of servicecollectively. Students engaged in a varietyof projects, from recycling toys at the GAIAMovement to serving dinner to homelesswomen in transition at Deborah’s Place topromoting an anti-tobacco message in ourown neighborhood by creating a photogallery. By providing meaningful projectslike these, we are helping our youths buildpositive attitudes toward volunteerism inhopes of encouraging them to continueengaging in service for years to come.

leadserve

As an organization, we are continuing tomake strides toward building capacity andbecoming a stronger and more sustainableoperation. By strengthening our Board ofDirectors, developing collaborations withother community organizations, and ex-panding our staff and volunteer forces, wewere able increase our revenue by 28.8%this year. This made it possible for us tosupport our expanding programs and thegrowing demand for our services. Beginningin Fall 2010, we increased access to our pro-grams by extending our service hours by anadditional 8 hours each week—the Centeris now open Mondays thru Thursdays from2-7pm. Also, we gained additional class-room space to help us accommodate morestudents for tutoring, workshops, and classes.

Looking ahead to 2011 - 2012, we see manyexciting opportunities! We plan to furtherstrengthen our programs by developingmore metrics as a means for programevaluation and expanding our volunteertutoring staff. Furthermore, we look for-ward to building our collaborative effortswith partnering organizations such as theAsian Health Coalition and After School

Matters to bring more diverse programmingto our students. We also recently learnedthat Project: VISION has been chosen as aSpringboard Foundation grantee; we arevery excited to work with the Foundation inthe coming year to build program capacityand to enhance our organizational stabilityand self-sufficiency.

Finally, thank you to all for your continuedsupport and encouragement! It is the gen-erosity of many that makes it possible for usto bring our mission to more and moreyouths every day!

SINCERELY,

Karen ChiuExecutive Director

Personal development means building eachyouth's strengths and interests, and fosteringconfidence and positive attitudes. Youthfind mentors in our staff, while recreationalactivities and career development programshelp build leadership skills.

Community service is an integral part ofpositive youth development. Project: YouthInitiative aims to foster a sense of socialresponsibility in youth by building aware-ness, fostering positive attitudes, andproviding meaningful service opportunities.

our backgroundProject: VISION was an idea conceived by a group of youngprofessionals, students, and volunteers who saw a need forcommunity youth to have a place to call their own. In Fall2004, with the help of a few volunteers and borrowed spacefrom the Chicago Public Library and Valentine Boys andGirls Club in Bridgeport, Project: VISION piloted its firsttutoring program. Since then, our programs have reachedover 250 youths, while remaining primarily volunteer-runand continuing to provide all programs free to youth.

our studentsyouth between the ages of 12 and 21 from Chinatown, Bridgeport, and surrounding neighborhoods

96%96%90%

Chinese Americanreflects the demographics of the area

are enrolled inChicago Public Schools

from lower income families**receive free or reduced school lunch

from first generationimmigrant families

would be the first in theirfamilies to attend college

90%63%

25

60

120

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

$20,580

$44,179

$100,000

2005 2011 2015

Growth of Project: VISION

Students served

Revenue

racial breakdownof students

0.7% HISPANIC0.4% WHITE

7.4% BLACK

percentage of 7th graders meetingor exceeding Reading standards

66.7% 67.7% 77.5%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

HAINES DISTRICT STATE

percentage of 7th graders meetingor exceeding Science standards

65.4% 70.6% 82.4%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

HAINES DISTRICT STATE

statistics from the John C. HainesSchool’s 2009-2010 academic year

91.5% ASIAN

our purposein this communityIt’s a common misconceptionthat Asian American studentsalready excel academically,and therefore, these communitieshave little need for tutoring andafter school programs. The truthis, every community has anunderserved population andwe are no exception.

We are often asked what theteenagers in these neighborhoodsneed—and what they lack isacademic support. Take forexample, John C. Haines School,our neighborhood elementaryschool, where 91.5% are AsianAmerican. During the 2009-2010school year, the percentages of7th grade students at HainesSchool that met or exceededISAT standards in Reading andScience were slightly lower whencompared to the district andsignificantly lower than those ofthe state.

Project: VISION has beenso beneficial to my educationNot only do they offer homework tutoring, they provide somany opportunities that help you prepare for the future.

”“education highlights

Education has always been at the foundation of Project: VISION’s programs.

PROJECT: VISION STUDENT, GRADE 11

The tutors' tireless devotion anddedication . . . are the core of the organization.during the 2010-2011 school year:The After School Homework Tutoring Program assisted over30 youths in grades 6 - 12.

▪ Each student received an average of 5 hours oftutoring each week, totaling more than 200 hoursduring the school year.

▪ We made our tutoring services more individualizedby developing student profiles, by helping students setpersonal goal plans, and by providing daily progressand regular check-in reports.

Project: VISION helped 15 students prepare for the ACT collegeentrance exam.

▪ 11 students completed the course, with an averagecomposite score improvement of 3.0 points.

▪ The average score improvement on the Englishsection was 4.4 points.

“ ”FORMER PROJECT: VISION STUDENT, COLLEGE GRADUATE

Project: VISION strives to help youth understand theimportance of volunteerism and realize that they canmake an impact with community service. This year,50 youths participated in our projects, collectivelyearning over 500 service learning hours.

Some of our service projects included:

▪ Recycling projects at the GAIA Movement

▪ Serving dinner to homeless women atDeborah’s Place

▪ Volunteering at the Hustle Up theHancock event to raise funds for lungdisease research

By providing meaningful and engaging serviceprojects, our goal is to build positive attitudes thatmotivate youth to continue engaging in service foryears to come. This will in turn help us build astronger community.

PROJECT: VISION VOLUNTEERcommunity outreach gives youth courageto pursue their own interests and navigate life

”“

After they participated in an anti-tobacco service project lastspring, 15 students were surveyed about the program.

▪ 14 out of 15 students agreed or strongly agreed thatthe program helped them learn something new.

▪ 13 out of 15 students agreed or strongly agreed thatas a result of the program, they are encouraged tocontinue volunteering in the community.

When asked how often they volunteer, 4 students stated,“I ONLY volunteer when I have to (i.e. to fulfill school require-ments).” Of these:

▪ 3 agreed or strongly agreed that as a result ofthe program, they want to continue volunteering.

▪ 3 agreed or strongly agreed that they are willing toparticipate again in a similar program.

We need programs to help youth understandhow important it is . . . to give back“ ”highlights

service

PARENT OF A PROJECT: VISION STUDENT

Often, service learning goes hand in hand withdeveloping youths’ strengths, interests, andleadership skills. This past spring, 15 youths ledProject: Smoke-Free Chinatown, a collaborativeinitiative with the Asian Health Coalition. They workedwith a goal to build awareness and promote an anti-tobacco message in the Chinatown community by usingPhotovoice, a methodology that utilizes photography toeducate and spark discussion about social issues.

Over the semester, students worked as a team to developan approach and solution to the smoking problem.

▪ Students first learned about the problem byparticipating in workshops about tobacco usestatistics and health consequences.

leadership highlights“ the program provided me with theskills and tools needed to succeed

FORMER PROJECT: VISION STUDENT, COLLEGE GRADUATE

Over the semester, students worked as a team to developan approach and solution to the smoking problem.

▪ Students first learned about the problem byparticipating in workshops about tobacco usestatistics and health consequences.

leadership highlights

▪ Students then took to the neighborhood to findout what the problem looks like in our community.Using the Operation Storefront curriculum designedby the Respiratory Health Association of Chicago,students found that tobacco marketing and adver-tising at local businesses indeed targets youth andallows easy access to tobacco products.

▪ Next, students formed teams toidentify ways to educate and preventyouth tobacco use in the community.”

the program provided me with theskills and tools needed to succeedFORMER PROJECT: VISION STUDENT, COLLEGE GRADUATE

▪ In the culminating project, youth decided to createa photo gallery to spark discussion and convey ananti-tobacco message. Teams planned and capturedimages of tobacco use in the community, edited andcreated captions, and set up a photo gallery showingat the Chinatown Library. Over fifty communitymembers attended the event.

corporate,foundation,governmentcontributorsAsian Health Coalition

Best Buy

BP America

Chinatown Parking LotCorporation

City of ChicagoDepartment of FamilySupport Services

Springboard Foundation

State Farm Foundation

URS Corporation

Walmart Foundation

partnersAsian Health Coalition

Loyola University Centerfor Experiential Learning

in-kinddonorsArt Institute of Chicago

Arthur MurrayDance Studio

Barnes & NobleBookstores

Bernie DechantPhotography

Bespoke Cuisine

Catherine & Ken Moy

CheesecakeHandmade Beauty

Chicago ArchitectureFoundation

thank you!Project: VISION’s beginnings were made possible by volunteers, andtoday, volunteers continue to be our most valuable asset, from theBoard of Directors to the Executive Director to homework tutors andholiday gift wrappers. We thank all those who give their time andefforts to us so generously!

Staff & TutorsShuo Ming Fung

Samone Hu

Michelle Lee

Sandy Nguyen

Holly Tan

Michelle Xichen Zhao

Executive DirectorKaren Chiu

Program CoordinatorMichelle Lee

DevelopmentCoordinatorKimberly Stemp

DevelopmentInterns & VolunteersLydiana Abbaloa

Lindsey O’Brien

Weijing Zhu

Carmen Mei

staff / volunteers

Megan BulfinOPERATIONS MANAGER

Best Buy

Karen Chiu, M.D.HOSPITALIST PHYSICIAN

NorthShore UniversityHealthSystems

Kirsten ChanNATIONAL AD SALESACCOUNT MANAGER

Cars.com

Krystle GohPROJECT MANAGERTO THE CEO

LEARN CharterSchool Network

Jennifer LauPH.D. CANDIDATE INCHEMICAL & BIOLOGICALENGINEERING

Northwestern Univ.

Jessica WangASSOCIATE

Adams Street Partners

Vincent KwanIMAGING OPERATIONSMANAGER

Iron Mountain, Inc.

Anthony MedinaMANAGER OF ENROLLMENTAND MATCHING

Big Brothers BigSisters of MetropolitanChicago

board of directors chairs

Chicago Blackhawks

Chicago InternationalMovies & Music Festival

Comedy Sportz

Constellation Brands

Crown Imports, LLC

De Cero

Dominick’s

Edible Arrangements

Ellie Thompson & Co.

Enbeadia

Entertainment Cruises

Erin Gallagher Jewelry

Eva May

Faiz Zuberi

Field Museum

Five ACCESSORIES

Framing Mode & Gallery

Frank Lloyd WrightPreservation Trust

Gourmet Gift Baskets

Grand Palace Restaurant

Groupon

Hot Mama

Hotel Felix

Hunny Boutique

iO

Jenny Chan

Jess LC Jewelry

John G. Shedd Aquarium

John Hancock CenterObservatory

K&S European Boutique

Karen Chiu

Karen Tam

Kathy Xiong

Lettuce Entertain You

Lin Chiu

Living Social

Lush Wine

Lynfred Winery

Megan Bulfin

Melinda Holtz

Metropolis PerformingArts Center

Mr. & Mrs. Digz

Museum ofContemporary Art

Northlight Theater

Old Town Schoolof Folk Music

Panera Bread

Paper Source

Paul Savigny

Peggy NotebaertMuseum

Ravinia

Redhead Piano Bar

Rich Medina, Jr.

Ricobene’s

RobotCity

Rodan

Sakura Karaoke Lounge

Sea Safaris Sailing School

South Loop Acupuncture

Staples

String-a-strand

Studio L’Amour

Taco Flavored Eggrolls

Target

Truefitt & Hill

Urban Oasis

Vienna Beef

Whole Foods

Wines for Humanity

Laura Medina

Stephen Merritt

Tyler Mork

Catherine Ng & Ken Moy

John Mui, DDS

Diana Ng

Melissa Ocampo

Kenneth Onishe

Nosayaba Osaigbovo

Snehal Patel

Amy & Tim Prevo

Lupe Sanchez

Alicia Stien

Kevin Rabichow

Colleen Ramsey

David &Stephanie Roldan

Don Rosenfeld

Martin Rosenfeld

Aimee Shyn

Karen Tam

Sandy Tsao

Alvin Tse

Boris Tse

Peter Tong

Tso Family

Kelly Walter

Jessica Wang

Meme Wang

Marques Woodson

Calvin Yang

Mark Yun

Hythem Zayed

Anne Zhang

Angela Zirk

Charlene & Yat-Pui Au

Jenna Bode

Megan Bulfin

Gary Chan

Leola Chan

Edwin Charoenpitaks

Karen Chiu

David DeLeon

Linda Dobson(Linda’s Pharmacy)

Angelica Esposito

Edwin & Yuki Galisanao

Paul Gaura

David Gonzales

Krystle Goh

Erica & Matt Hong

Samone Hu

Michael Kato

Kristine Kim

Won Kim

Vincent Kwan

Samantha Kyme

Elizabeth LaRocca

Jennifer Lau

Sau Wei Lau

Vivien & Adam Laud

Nghe Le

Otto Lee

Apinya Lertratanakul

Man Ting &Michael Limjoco

Angela Liu

Sean Liu

Liu Family

Megan Malone

Nancy McClellan

Anthony &Joanna Medina

individual contributors

statement of financial position20102011 20102011

assetsCash and Cash Equivalents

Grants Receivable

Prepaid Insurance

TOTAL ASSETS

liabilitiesAccounts Payable

TOTAL LIABILITIES

net assetsUnrestricted

TOTAL LIABILITIESAND NET ASSETS

12,115

N/A

N/A

12,115

1,000

1,000

11,115

11,115

6,240

6,520

680

13,440

1,510

1,510

11,930

11,930

revenues andother supportContributions*

Fundraising Events

Grants

Other Income

TOTAL REVENUESAND SUPPORT

expensesProgram Services

Support Services

Management/General

Fundraising

TOTAL EXPENSES

12,264

16,132

2,745

318

31,459

18,595

5,198

2,670

26,463

10,454

14,995

18,317

413

44,179

32,495

7,018

3,852

43,365

*Corporate and individual donations

2011 revenues and other support

OTHER INCOME (1%)

GRANTS (41%)

CONTRIBUTIONS (24%)

2011 expenses

MANAGEMENT (16%)

PROGRAMS (75%)

FUNDRAISING (9%)

FUNDRAISINGEVENTS (34%)

we look forward to

improving programs by…▪ developing more program metrics as

a means for program evaluation, sothat we can continue to improve ourprograms.

▪ strengthening collaborative effortswith partnering organizations.

▪ continuing to grow service learninginitiatives and bring this to theforefront of our programming.

developing the board by…▪ forming an executive committee to

keep all members engaged.

▪ recruiting new members to bringdiverse skills and expertise to the group.

▪ engaging the board in developing astrategic plan.

▪ seeking out leadership trainingopportunities for our members.

enhancing ourfundraising strategy by...▪ continuing to diversify funding sources.

▪ building a donor base.

▪ increasing visibility in the community.

Project: VISION, Inc.MONDAYS THRU THURSDAYS 2PM TO 7PM

2301 S Archer Ave, Unit #3Chicago, IL 60616312.808.1898 | staff@projectvisionchicago.orgwww.projectVISIONchicago.org