Many worry that the American education system is not preparing U.S. students to be leaders in the global world. Plus, when kids are not engaged in the classroom they are more vulnerable to participation in criminal activity.

The William T. Grant Foundation has recently awarded grants totaling $2.5 million to research, capacity-building programs and after-school seminar initiatives that will meet a range of needed developments for the nation's youth.

The six research grants given will focus on how to achieve positive youth outcomes in the classroom and in after-school programs. Funds were given to projects undertaken at the University of California at Santa Cruz, the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Yale University, Boston College and joint projects from several other institutions.

For capacity-building programs, the University of Chicago received $300,000 for its Improving Studies of the Impact of Group Level Interventions on Program Quality and Youth Outcomes, which will analyze the impact of settings on youth.

The Taproot Foundation Service Grant Program also received $40,000 to provide capacity-building services in five New York City-based programs and Brigham and Women's Hospital received more than $90,000 for human development capacity programs.

The American Youth Policy Forum received a communication grant of $162,745 to serve at-risk youth with quality after-school programs.

In light of this inspiring gift, organization leaders may consider allocating some of their nonprofit fundraising efforts toward developing after-school programs for their local communities. With President Barack Obama having declared that the country is in an education crisis, nonprofit leaders may find a number of foundations will help support these efforts.