Contributions to Education: Mutual of Omaha

At Mutual of Omaha, it’s our mission to be there to help in times of need. We make that promise to our customers and that commitment to our community. A commitment to education is one of the four key areas to which our philanthropic efforts are directed.

Here are a few examples of how we make a difference:

St. Augustine Indian Mission and School -- Since 1999, Mutual of Omaha has played an important role assisting St. Augustine Indian Mission and School in Winnebago, Neb. Support in 2003 included sponsorship of three children through the school’s Sponsor-a-Child campaign – helping young people get the education they need to achieve their dreams.

Boys and Girls Clubs of Omaha -- Project Learn is an after-school academic assistance, enrichment and enhancement program for middle school students. The program, which is funded by Mutual of Omaha, is helping positively impact the academic skills of at-risk students.

The Wimberly Initiative -- The Wimberly Initiative is a school-based program at an Omaha, Neb., elementary school. The goal of this program is to decrease the inappropriate placement of African American students in special education programs. Through this initiative, six chapters of The 100 Black Men designed and implemented school-based projects to reduce referrals to special education and support feasible exits from special education classrooms while working to help students achieve success in mainstream classrooms. The program consists of four elements: mentoring, teacher development, academic tutoring and stakeholder participation. Mutual of Omaha supported the initiation of this pilot program.

Omaha Street School -- The Omaha Street School serves a population of urban high school students who have been unsuccessful in traditional learning environments. The mission of the school is to provide quality, affordable education to economically and scholastically disadvantaged youth in a Christian environment for the enrichment of students’ lives through physical, spiritual and mental development. Mutual of Omaha is providing funding to provide math textbooks and workbooks for every student, as well as teaching and learning aids for teachers of all grade levels.

Salvation Army School Supplies Drive -- Students throughout the Omaha community return to school with the supplies they need thanks in large to a joint project between Mutual of Omaha and the Salvation Army.

Wild Kingdom Kids’ Summit on Conservation -- Kids have great ideas; the Wild Kingdom Kids’ Summit on Conservation challenged kids ages 9-12 to think of creative ideas to help save a threatened or endangered North American animal. More than 5,600 students nationwide submitted one-page essays outlining what they could do to help save a particular animal. One winner from every state, plus the District of Columbia, was selected to attend the third Wild Kingdom Kids’ Summit in San Diego. The Kids’ Summit took place May 5-7. It was an all-expenses-paid, once-in-a-lifetime experience for the participants.