About Seedling Foundation

Seedling Foundation’s mission is to mitigate the impact of parental incarceration on children in Central Texas through school-based mentoring. Seedling’s mentors are volunteers from the community who are matched with eligible children in Austin area schools. Through partnering with school districts, the organization offers ongoing support to both the children and mentors, who help provide stable, long-term relationships for the students and help them develop and maintain positive attitudes about school. Mentoring can provide the caring, consistent presence of an adult friend that research has shown to be a major protective factor in building resilience among at-risk youth. Since its inception in 1997, Seedling Foundation has served over 2700 students, with a presence at one time or another on 150+ campuses in 11 districts and 16 charter schools in Austin and surrounding school districts. Seedling has a record of strong fiscal responsibility and administration and is a respected organization among schools and those in the non-profit community. Seedling’s workplace culture is strong, showing compassion and care for its staff, mentors, mentees and donors. The Executive Director and engaged Board of Directors are eager to grow the organization by increasing the number of mentors and by providing additional support services for children who have an incarcerated parent.