Brad Pitt's brother makes pitch for an area Care to Learn program

More than 50 community leaders gathered in Cape Girardeau on Tuesday evening to consider bringing the Care to Learn program to Cape Girardeau County.

Doug Pitt, a Springfield, Missouri, businessman, founder of Care to Learn and the younger brother of actor Brad Pitt, explained how his organization helps facilitate education for poverty-stricken children by establishing emergency funds that schools can use to address health, hunger and hygiene needs.

"We ask two questions: 'Is [an issue] keeping a child out of the classroom or disrupting the classroom experience?' And if the answer is 'yes' to either of those, we fund it," Pitt said.

Pitt started Care to Learn in Springfield nearly eight years ago to provide schools across the state with the means to support students without having to jump through bureaucratic hoops, plus to establish a mechanism to harness the philanthropic efforts of community members.

"Every school has poverty. Every school sees this," he said. "And a lot of the time, people are just looking for an avenue to give."

Care to Learn is seeking 501(c)3 not-for-profit status, but is structured so each district has its own fund. He recommended establishing separate funds for each of Cape Girardeau County's five school districts. Each one would likely have a starting budget of at least $35,000.

Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, who serves on the board of the St. Louis Care to Learn chapter, was the one who orchestrated Pitt's visit to Cape Girardeau.

"Over the past year, I've become friends with Doug through the Care to Learn organization, and I've seen the impact it has in communities," he said. "So I asked if he would be interested in coming to Cape and he said yes, and so we put together a call list, and here we are."

Kinder was optimistic about the program's potential for the area, as was Cape Girardeau schools superintendent Dr. Jim Welker.

"I think it looks fantastic," Welker said after the presentation. "We have needs for children that currently aren't being met, or are having some difficulty being met. We receive great help from the United Way and others, but I really appreciate Lt. Gov. Kinder and the Care to Learn staff presenting this opportunity."

Though it was only an initial proposition, the audience seemed receptive to the idea, asking practical questions about implementation.

"Conversations with the superintendent is the next step at this point," Pitt said. "And if the decision is to move forward, then our staff will be able to come down and help them set things up. When you work in the vicinity with poverty, the first thing you realize is the struggles and the needs that these kids have and Care to Learn can be that fix to right a wrong."

tgraef@semissourian.com