The BankNewport Charitable Foundation has awarded $15,000 to the Star Kids Scholarship Program and $7,000 to FabNewport’s Healthy Meals Program, the bank announced Tuesday.
The Star Kids grant supports tutoring, supervised after-school and summer programs, school transportation, textbooks and uniforms. The program works with low-income students who have a parent with a history of incarceration or substance use, with the aim of getting each one through high school. It served 153 students in kindergarten through grade 12 during the 2025-26 academic year, 86 of them in Rhode Island, and reports a 95 percent graduation rate, with 92 percent of graduates continuing to postsecondary education. The organization expects the funding to reach as many as 20 students for one-on-one tutoring, 48 for after-school activities and 52 for summer programming.
“This support helps address the individual needs of our students, whether that means tutoring, transportation, a school uniform or the opportunity to attend a summer or after-school program,” said Executive Director Karen Flanagan.
The FabNewport grant funds lunches and snacks for roughly 60 middle and high school students in free summer and extended-learning programs, including The Newport Experience and the organization’s Endless Summer program. FabNewport ties the meals to lessons on nutrition and local food systems through partnerships with area farms.
“Providing healthy meals is foundational to learning, well-being and belonging,” said Executive Director Steven Heath. “BankNewport’s support will help ensure that hunger does not prevent our learners from engaging fully.”
Founded in 2013, FabNewport served more than 400 students last year across in-school, after-school and summer programs. About 70 percent of participants identify as BIPOC and more than 75 percent qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
BankNewport President and CEO Jack Murphy said both organizations address needs that extend beyond the classroom.
The bank has funded Star Kids annually since 2010 and has been presenting sponsor of its spring gala since 2023. Diogo Ventura, a BankNewport senior vice president, joined the Star Kids board in 2024 and became treasurer last year.
Both grants came from the foundation’s spring 2026 cycle, which distributed more than $470,000 to nearly 50 nonprofits statewide.
