PEAK Appoints Erika Soria Development Director
MEDIA ADVISORY: For Immediate Release
DATE: November 21, 2016
CONTACT: Bob Thomas CEO and Executive Director The Partnership to Educate and Advance Kids. 773-235-8051
Erika Soria Development Director The Partnership to Educate and Advance Kids 773-252-4457
Partnership to Educate & Advance Kids (PEAK)
Appoints Erika Soria Development Director
Chicago (November 21, 2016) The Partnership to Educate and Advance Kids (PEAK), a nonprofit organization providing scholarship and mentoring to underserved youth since 1998, is pleased to announce the hiring of Erika Soria as its Development Director.
Following the announcement of PEAK’s $1M gift from The Raitt Family, the appointment of its CEO and Executive Director, Deacon Bob Thomas, PEAK welcomes its newest member to the PEAK family, Erika Soria.
Thomas said, ‘The generous Raitt Family gift will allow PEAK to scale its programming and grow from a 35-scholar to 70 scholarship and mentoring program by 2020. One of Erika’s first projects will be to help create a fundraising strategic plan to expand the program to provide more students with a path to a successful future.’ The new leadership team was formally introduced to the community on November 10, 2016, during PEAK’s 2nd Annual ‘VIP’ Reception.
Erika joins PEAK with over ten years of experience in fund development, event management, and strategic planning. Prior to joining PEAK, Erika served as development officer, overseeing special events and individual giving for the Chicago Urban League. Erika has worked with prestigious nonprofits in the Chicagoland area including, Youth Guidance, the Chicago Zoological Society, Ronald McDonald's House Charities-CNI, and Holy Trinity High School. Erika received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work from Northeastern Illinois University in 2007 and a Master of Social Work degree with a concentration in Leadership Development in Social Services from Loyola University Chicago in 2008.
Why PEAK? Erika shared ‘Throughout my adolescent and professional career I have been fortunate to have other individuals help guide my path. I came up the ranks in my fundraising career thanks to mentors who saw the potential and took a chance with me. There are two things I consider with any mission I aligned myself with: Does it support my personal mission? Will it allow me to further my commitment to serving the youth? The answer was an easy YES in my decision to join PEAK. There is much work to be done, but I’m up for the challenge.’
PEAK provides full tuition scholarships for students to attend their partner school, Holy Trinity School. The PEAK scholars are a diverse group of 14-18-year-old students, primarily from the West and South sides of Chicago. PEAK has consistently focused on the otherwise overlooked students, such as those who enter high school with average academic credentials but show a true desire and potential to succeed. PEAK’s support for each scholar also includes a match with an adult mentor throughout their high school career. Since its founding in 1998 PEAK has supported over 250 students and provided over $4M in tuition funding for its scholars.
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