GOAL CARD
Our Goal Card program teaches public school students how to set and achieve academic, financial and life goals. The incentive program provides structured academic mentoring and support from adult volunteers, who lend their time and insight to provide ongoing encouragement and guidance.
Students earn points for their achievements, which are redeemable for school supplies, gift cards and small electronic items. They can also choose to bank their points for even bigger rewards. Goal Card students continue to have a 100% graduation rate.
TO QUALIFY:
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Students must be in grades 5-12
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Be a student at Cummings (Elementary – 8th grade), LaRose Elementary, Booker T. Washington Middle and High School, or Bellevue Middle School
BY THE NUMBERS (2025-2026)
325
Students Incentived
15,000+
Students served since 2023
500+
Students reached through outreach and community events
750+
Financial Education hours delivered
402
Volunteers Engaged
15
Pennies a day
Deposit Day Engagement
21
Redemption Events Held
$580
Saved by 5th Grade Pennies a day participants
4
Director Partner Schools
5
Partnership outreach schools
SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS
DIRECT GOAL CARD SCHOOLS
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Bellevue Middle School
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Booker T. Washington High School
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Cummings Optional School K-8
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LaRose Elementary School
PARTNERSHIP
OUTREACH SCHOOLS
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Power Center Academy (12th Grade)
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Central High School
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Hollis F. Price Middle College High School
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Hamilton High School
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Compass Midtown High School
KEY PARTNERSHIPS & PROGRAMS
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Next Level Mentor Partnership (Street Ministries)
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Best Buy Teen Tech Center Partnership (Knowledge Quest)
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Money Mondays with Knowledge Quest
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International Paper Volunteer Program
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Bank On Memphis
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Dress for Success Memphis
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ASAF
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Volunteer Memphis
2025–2026 HIGHLIGHTS
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45% increase in overall volunteer commitment
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77% increase in International Paper volunteer participation
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Highest original coin deposit in Pennies a Day history (since 2018)
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100% Booker T. Washington Class of 2026 graduation rate
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100% Booker T. Washington graduates placed in college, military, or other post-secondary opportunities
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13 GoCard Legacy students graduated from Booker T. Washington
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More than $8 million in scholarships and financial awards earned by Booker T. Washington's Class of 2026
Making an Impact for Generations To Come
When Timberli Brown walked across the stage at her 8th grade graduation, it was more than a personal milestone. It was a testament to what happens when a family is invested in and invests in itself.
Timberli, a Goal Card Legacy student, graduated from Cummings K-8 Optional School and is now preparing to take on her next chapter at White Station High School. But the RISE Memphis story does not stop with her. Her twin sisters, Jannie and Jada, are stepping into 8th grade this fall as Goal Card scholars continuing a family tradition of financial empowerment that is already shaping three futures.
That is the power of intergenerational impact.
At RISE Memphis, we believe that when you invest in one member of a family, you invest in the whole family. The Goal Card program is designed to meet students where they are, building financial knowledge, goal-setting skills, and the habits that carry young people from the classroom into adulthood and beyond.
The Brown family represents everything this work is about. Not just one student crossing a finish line but an entire family learning, growing, and rising together.
