GCM Grosvenor believes that people thrive when their communities thrive. Their commitment extends beyond business results to building a stronger future for their clients, employees, industry, and society.
For decades, GCM Grosvenor has been committed to strengthening the communities where they live, work, and invest. From civic and charitable donations to volunteerism, mentorship, and nonprofit board service, they use their time, resources, and expertise to make a lasting difference.
One of the many ways GCM Grosvenor does this is through their partnership with WITS, more specifically, their engagement in our WITS Summer Books initiative.
WITS Summer Books
WITS Summer Books is an initiative that brings the WITS community together to raise funds that provide books for students’ at-home libraries, teachers’ classroom libraries, and WITS programs. Teams of WITS supporters unite to raise money for a Chicago elementary school.
Sixty-one percent of low-income families have no age-appropriate children’s books at home. In a school district where 71% of students are from low-income families, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) students need books for their home libraries. Only 18% of Chicago public elementary schools have functioning libraries.
WITS Summer Books aims to improve these statistics by providing students with books they can take home for the summer.
GCM Grosvenor & WITS
GCM Grosvenor has been dedicated to the WITS community for years, and their commitment continues to grow. They host students each week for WITS Workplace Mentoring, investing nearly $1 million since 2008 into the literacy development of hundreds of students.
As part of WITS Summer Books, GCM Grosvenor gifts brand-new, culturally relevant books to every student in the school to take home and share with their families.
Book Packing Event
This past spring, GCM Grosvenor helped with our WITS Summer Books campaign by hosting a book packing event for their WITS mentors. The GCM Grosvenor employees collected and organized books for students in accordance with their age group so that we could send students home with books for the summer.
“As a longtime WITS Corporate Partner, GCM Grosvenor was proud to join the recent book packing event. Supporting WITS and its mission to build stronger communities through literacy reflects our firm’s ongoing commitment to giving back to the places where we live and work. WITS programming makes a tangible difference for students and educators across Chicago, and we’re honored to contribute to that impact.”
Jennifer Wendorf, Principal, Cybersecurity & Risk, GCM Grosvenor
WITS thanks GCM Grosvenor for their unwavering dedication to the WITS mission. We can’t wait to give away more books this spring and have another great school year in the fall.
Become a WITS Corporate Partner
In today’s competitive business landscape, corporations seek ways to engage and retain their employees. One of the most effective ways to do this is through a well-designed corporate engagement program. WITS is committed to cultivating long-term relationships with our corporate partners and providing engaging programming that benefits them and creates opportunities for all students in Chicago to be literate. WITS has over 30 years of experience partnering with Chicago corporations like Bank of America. There are many benefits to partnering with WITS:
- Turn-key programs that engage employees, leading to higher retention rates and employee satisfaction.
- A dedicated program coordinator to facilitate meaningful, research-supported programming.
- A streamlined way to give Chicago students and teachers access to age-appropriate, culturally specific books they currently lack access to.
- Exposure opportunities that highlight your company’s commitment to the city of Chicago.
If you are interested in becoming a WITS Corporate partner, please fill out our inquiry form.
