How Ignite Academy is helping low-income families while providing academic support for children

A United Way after-school program launched two years ago to bolster literacy and math competencies is also helping families thrive in Windsor, a vice-president with the organization said.

Liam Giles-Hayes said Ignite Academy operates in six different schools across Windsor-Essex providing academic support to children in Grade 2 to Grade 7, while also providing wrap-around support to families.

"Whether it be connecting them with employment services or housing, or even mental health services, it really is that holistic wrap-around support," Giles-Hayes said on Windsor Morning.

"We're not just supporting the child in the program. It's really about supporting the family and bringing them into the program."

Ifeoma Ihedioha, a single-parent from Nigeria who moved to Canada more than five years ago, says her children are in the Ignite Academy program.

"It's really been helping them settle down, adjust, shape their lives, helping them to be able to, like, adjust with, you know, their friends and make friends … helps the kids with their homework," Ihedioha told CBC News.

"They've been helping families, sometimes financially, sometimes with grocery, sometimes with gift cards."

On Tuesday Ihedioha was presented with a 2011 Jeep Compass, thanks to the efforts of auto shop students at École secondaire catholique E.J. Lajeunesse over the last semester. The gift was part of Rebuilding Wheels, Rebuilding Lives — a program for high school students taking a mechanics class getting a vehicle into tiptop shape with the help of their teacher. The vehicle is then given free to a family in need, through an application process by the United Way. 

WATCH | Ifeoma Ihedioha gifted with a 2011 Jeep Compass: 

This Windsor, Ont., family drove away in a new-to-them car, thanks to these students

6 months ago

Duration 2:10

For a family in need, having a car can make all the difference. The students at École secondaire catholique E.J. Lajeunesse gave one such family a refurbished 2011 Jeep Compass on Tuesday, completely free of charge. Now, it'll have a long second life as transportation for Ifeoma Ihedioha and her kids. Windsor Morning's Amy Dodge spoke with teachers Shelley Ryan and Antoine Labbé, students Cielle Levesque and Graziella Mocri and Ifeoma Ihedioha, who drove away in her new car.

Food insecurity, housing insecurity being addressed

Giles-Hayes said food insecurity, housing insecurity and precarious employment are among the many issues they hear about from families.

"It's a lot of those challenges that everyone's facing but they can pile on each other when you're living in low income and become very stressful," he said.

"So, that's really what our program is really all about. It's kind of relieving that stress [while] providing that support for the children in our programs."

Giles-Hayes said Ignite Academy has seen "great results so far" in terms of the number of students who stay in the program.

"It's incredible to see the growth and now students [are] going into post-secondary, getting their master's degrees," he said.

Giles-Hayes said there's "a long wait list at one school" for Ignite Academy, adding that "we could actually double the number of students that we have currently in the program."

The participating schools are in priority neighbourhoods with the highest rates of childhood poverty: West Windsor, Downtown Windsor, and Leamington.