Grants and Fundraising series includes both funded and unfunded applications, as well as other materials related to fundraising and cultivating relations with donors. Researchers should look at the grant applications for summary descriptions of SAC and its activities. The Background subseries includes concepts that SAC used in grant applications and a list of funded grants with descriptions. Grants funded include: SOAR, Community Impact, a pass through grant to the Women's Empowerment Project of Monroe, Active Voices of Youth, and Raise a Strong Voice for Children, submitted and funded from 1999 through 2003. These grants demonstrate that SAC was able to form partnerships with Michigan State University and its Institute for Children, Youth, and Family, the Michigan State Bar Foundation, and others, with the purpose of extending their advocacy services throughout Michigan. Student Opportunities and Alternative Resources (SOAR) subseries includes project evaluations and information about STYLUS that, as an outgrowth of SOAR, continued to function within the Washtenaw County ISD. Active Voice of Youth subseries contains the program for a Youth Leadership Conference in September, 2001. The subseries, Raise a Strong Voice for Children Legal Advocacy Project, includes information on the partnership with the University of Michigan Law School and SAC to create an advocacy agenda to be implemented by a staff attorney and volunteer law students. The Michigan State Bar Foundation funded the first year with an Access to Justice grant to address educational equity issues and then continued a second year of funding. The subseries includes the year end report for 2001-2002 by the Project Director/Staff Attorney, Elsa Shartsis. This report documents the losses incurred by SAC in the February 19, 2002 fire in which SAC lost furnishings, equipment, and most of its files, supplies, and reference books. The report outlines the accomplishments of the Project Director and reflects the increasing professionalism of the SAC staff and volunteers. The 2003 grant application evidences SAC's partnership with the University of Michigan Law School and the Michigan Poverty Law Program. SAC's goal was to build a framework for systematic legal advocacy and an attorney network for low-income students and their families. SAC wanted to push beyond non-legal advocacy.
