Just imagine facing a room of sixth graders, holding a prepared speech to give typical encouragement. You gaze into their eyes, understand that you need more than just words, and choose to discard your notes. This is exactly what happened with Eugene Lang, a businessman who visited his former school in East Harlem in 1981. Rather than delivering a rehearsed speech, he decided to make an impromptu pledge. He vowed to the whole class that if they finished high school, he would help pay for their college educations.
That moment happened purely on an instinctive basis, but it became a catalyst for change, which opened up many new avenues in education across the nation. What began as an attempt to do something special for just one class grew into a nationwide organisation known as the I Have a Dream Foundation. By making sure that there was a link between hope, effort, real financial support, and offering support through adult mentoring, Lang developed a highly effective philanthropic structure.
