Journey’s End Tutoring (JET) has had trouble finding funds this year. Its operation and future funding have been uncertain as JET leaders are transitioning the program into a more reliable and sustainable budget.
JET is a changing group of Houghton students that have been serving refugee families in Buffalo since 2004. These tutors develop relationships with the families, help them to learn English, and navigate their transition into American culture. JET is a student-led organization, not an official club. Because of this, funding for JET has come from different sources over the years.
JET’s top expense (the bare necessity) is transportation; however JET leaders expressed excitement and enthusiasm at the thought of what could be done with more funding. “With more funding, we could invest in ESL curriculum, picture books, markers and crayons, educational games, and we could buy more resources to support the incredible teaching and ministry taking place in Buffalo.” said Stephanie Ford.
In the past JET was funded by a number of sources. The most significant source was the contribution of Dr. Chuck Massey (professor of Urban Studies in Buffalo) from his budget, and the money that he pieced together from various sources in Buffalo. JET’s budget was usually composed of 3-5 sources at a time. “We always found the money somehow,” said JET president Jina Libby.
This year, JET has experienced a decline in funding for a number of reasons: Dr. Chuck Massey retired, Dr. Galman (who also funded JET) retired, and there have been budget cuts.
Right now, JET is in transition between funding sources. In this phase the SGA has been supportive by approving JET for $1,500 to use this year. JET is transitioning into more sustainable and reliable private funding. Leading this venture is Andrew Gaerte (an advancement and grant officer for Houghton), who is looking for possible donors and pursuing grants for future years. “We currently have a proposal for funding into one of our Western New York Church Partners for funding for the fall 2013 – spring 2014 JET program…. We are also currently working on a grant for the Western New York Foundation to fund the program for the following two years. Our ultimate goal in approaching foundations for funding is to make the funding of the program more secure and sustainable.” said Gaerte.
So how has JET been doing so far this semester in light of the transition? “Without God’s blessing, JET wouldn’t have happened this year… we had no money to call our own, and borrowed to start out. It was a questionable start that God has blessed.” said Libby.
This year, JET has economized its transportation costs by switching to vans. Previously, one bus and a driver would be hired to take the tutors to Buffalo. The average cost per trip was $475, and per semester $7600. This year, for the first two weeks buses were used and the cost was covered by funds from Greg Bish (on loan to be repaid later by JET). The last few weeks (and the plan for the rest of the year) is for three 11-passenger vans to be driven by certified students, cutting costs down to just gas expenses. The extrapolated cost of this semester is $2300.
JET leaders Caralyn Weisel, Jina Libby, Stephanie Ford, Tiffany Aguas, and Bethany Hillegas all expressed hope for JET’s future and pride in how it has been continuing (even without the people who started it initially).
“Everyone loves JET; it is a core part of Houghton. Everyone wants to help and that is encouraging,” said Bethany Hillegas. JET has been promoted and pushed as a fundamental part of Houghton’s outreach to prospective students, and is in its 9th year of operation. Pamela Witter, Executive Director of Development and the chair of Leadership Allegany summarized JET’s importance to Houghton’s impact, saying, “JET is a very important component of Houghton’s presence in Buffalo and we feel that it is essential to the success of all of our other initiatives in Buffalo as well.”