ConnectiKids connects students facing systemic inequities and other barriers with people, places, and experiences that level the playing field and inspire academic achievement, positive life choices, and big dreams.

We fulfill our youth-empowering, equity-advancing mission in partnership with schools, families, and the community. During the academic year and summer, we provide one-on-one academic tutoring, individualized mentoring, arts and enrichment programs, and community-based learning experiences. These connections and opportunities motivate historically underserved kids to embrace high expectations, overcome adversity, and reach their full potential.

ConnectiKids programs provide:

Academic support through a creative, innovative, and quality after-school program with individualized 1-on-1 tutoring
Mentors and role models who support positive development, empowerment, and understanding of the value of education
Enrichment activities that students would otherwise not be exposed to
Summer experiences thematically linking academic and enrichment components

Each year, we provide free programming to more than 200 K-12 students across the Greater Hartford area, maintaining a strong retention rate of approximately 90%

Each $100 gift will support one of 200 students!

Our students:

Develop positive attitudes toward learning, study skills, academics, and future aspirations.
Enhance comprehension of educational materials and concepts to strengthen foundations for academic success.
Develop positive self-image, identity, and decision-making.
Have opportunities to develop positive relationships with successful and inspiring mentors and role models.
They are exposed to new environments and experiences that influence their outlook positively.
Receive artistic and recreational experiences that support their cognitive, intellectual, and socio-emotional growth.

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This annual campaign is a call to action! We are asking YOU to be a Champion for Change and help us raise $20,000 to support the many programs and services ConnectiKids provides! We need you to walk beside us in this vital work to ensure all kids have opportunities for a brighter future.

ConnectiKids provides holistic support to Hartford students at a time when many face growing challenges beyond the reach of schools alone. As Hartford Public Schools contend with a $77 million budget deficit resulting in the loss of nearly 400 staff members, including essential student support positions, community-based programs like ConnectiKids play an increasingly important role in reinforcing the ecosystem of care and opportunity around our youth.

This support is more critical than ever. In the 2023–24 school year, over 5,600 students across Connecticut experienced homelessness, a 63% increase since 2021, with Hartford among the communities most deeply affected. These young people are at greater risk of falling behind academically and often lack access to safe spaces, enrichment opportunities, and consistent mentorship.

ConnectiKids helps meet those needs by offering not only academic support but also trusted relationships, creative outlets, and a strong sense of belonging. In a city still working to overcome longstanding opportunity gaps, our free programs provide individualized attention and a nurturing environment that complements classroom learning. We’re here to ensure every student we serve is seen, supported, and set up to thrive, not just in school, but in life.

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The entire year!

Our Tutoring and Mentoring Program is a creative and innovative program that provides students with high-quality after-school activities to support extended school hours and offer caring volunteers who help students develop personally and academically. ConnectiKids provides over 200 low-income, at-risk minority students in kindergarten through ninth grade in Hartford, CT, and surrounding areas with one-on-one tutoring and mentoring each year. The core focus is to provide students with equitable academic support through individualized tutoring, which in turn supports classroom learning. Students involved in the mentoring program are empowered by an increased understanding of education's value, thus forming a lifelong love of learning.

ConnectiKids uses book clubs to encourage literacy and reading comprehension skills. Students read age-appropriate books together and participate in fun learning activities that bring the books to life. The chosen books highlight current issues during the school year and correlate with our program theme during the summer. All students are provided with new books for each book club and can keep them at the end of each program to add to their personal libraries at home.

ConnectiKids embraces the fact that social and emotional learning play a critical part in academic success for young people. Our Arts and Enrichment and Summer programs encompass character-building activities that are often creatively linked to educational concepts in areas students would not have the opportunity to engage in. So many of our youth have had an especially challenging time these last few years. It is up to us to pave a path together for their future. Since 1978, we have been doing just that with your help, and now we need you more than ever!

ConnectiKids Arts & Enrichment and Summer Programs provide outlets for youth expression, healing from trauma that inner-city youth disproportionately encounter, and exposure to experiences that black and brown youth are historically excluded from. These programs also provide students with the tools for setting and working toward goals and encourage them to use their voices and advocate for themselves. ConnectiKids strives to hire local and culturally representative talent and professionals as class instructors in order for children to see themselves in these fields and envision an attainable future.

Thank you for considering becoming a Champion for Change! Let's positively impact the world together!

Reach out to us at adwyer@ct-kids.org to discuss larger donations, donating via check, stock, or company matching, corporate sponsorship, legacy giving, endowments, and grants.

*Want to learn more about ConnectiKids? Visit our website: here. Curious about what we accomplished in 2024–2025? Take a look at our Annual Report

ConnectiKids
EIN: 06-1035985 (501c3)

Champions for Change 25-26!

Give $100 per kid for 200 kids to help raise $20,000 for ConnectiKids' 2025-2026 Annual Campaign focused on Youth Development, Decreasing Disparities for Children, Making Impactful and Lasting Connections, and Building Community Legacy!

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