Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch received a total of $11,000 from the North Dakota Community Foundation (NDCF) COVID-19 Community and Nonprofit Response grant and the Minot Community Endowment Fund (MCEF). The funds received will be used to stabilize the IT network on our Minot campus to support the increased load of distance education and telehealth created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our residents are connecting to the Ranch network for distance learning classes, homework, and special education meetings. The school must use a broad range of platforms because of the individualized education necessary for each child.
In addition to the load on our switches from the school, we are providing some individual therapy and all family therapy via telehealth. With the number of visits to campus being limited, video calls with families are also adding to the load on our network.
The donations from NDCF and MCEF will allow us to continue to provide our children with healing therapy services, connect them with family, and ensure they receive quality distance-learning education.
Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch is a Christian residential treatment and educational center for children and their families. We help the most troubled, complicated, and amazing kids by providing best-in-class psychiatric therapy and trauma-informed care, where we look kids in the eye, walk with them, and help them become their best selves.
The North Dakota Community Foundation was established in 1976 to improve the quality of life for North Dakota's citizens through charitable giving and promoting philanthropy. The organization currently manages over $100 million in assets in over 700 charitable funds, all benefiting North Dakota communities, charities, and citizens.
The Minot Community Endowment Fund, a component fund of NDCF, was established by a grant from the Otto Bremer Foundation in 1981 as a way for local residents to give back to the Minot community to support nonprofit projects and programs. The fund is managed locally by a group of volunteers who make up the Advisory Committee and recommend grants from the fund annually.