NYC nonprofit Avenues for Justice
to receive share of $4.8M for
education, mentorship programs

A New York City-based nonprofit, Avenues for Justice, will receive part of a $4.8 million grant from the NBA’s philanthropic arm — the NBA Foundation — to support the non-profit’s programs, according to NewsOne.com. 

Avenues for Justice, founded in 1979, creates initiatives that empower youth affected by the criminal justice system through education, mentorship, and workforce development. Its programs are designed for participants age 13 through 24, the article said. 

“The vision of the NBA Foundation overlaps with the goals of Avenues for Justice and will allow us to expand our programming of skills training, mentorship, and job training for underrepresented youth,” said Alanna Rutherford, the nonprofit’s board chair. 

The grant money will be used to elevate Avenues for Justice’s work on eliminating recidivism, Rutherford said. 

“By providing a means to establish a solid economic foundation, the Foundation grant will assist in achieving Avenues for Justice’s mission to divert underrepresented, at-risk New York City youth from lives of crime,” Rutherford added. 

The grant will also support the organization’s HIRE UP program that works with at-risk youth. 

Greg Taylor, executive director of the NBA Foundation, praised the work of Avenues for Justice, “The organization’s dedication to intervention and diversion for youth in systematically disadvantaged communities dates back decades, and we look to the continued growth of its impact.”