KOSCIUSKO COUNTY — Gradway recently took first place and won $5,000 through the Yelp Foundation Gives Local grant contest.

Three nonprofits in Indiana were finalists, including Indy Reads and Nine 13 Sports which are both out of Indianapolis. Gradway won the contest by receiving more votes than either of the Indianapolis based companies.

Voting was open from Tuesday, Nov. 29 through Friday, Dec. 9 with participants being able to cast one vote per day. Gradway hasn’t yet received the final number of votes but they know they received well over 1,000 votes overall.

The grant will go towards Gradway’s general fund, which will provide coaching for at least 12 students for an entire year.

“This grant means we get to continue providing Grad and Success Coaches at the middle and high school levels in Warsaw, Wawasee, Tippecanoe Valley and Whitko Schools,” said Gradway Director Brittany Peterson. “Gradway coaches are instrumental in advocating for and empowering their Gradway students to get on track and stay on track,to graduate from high school. In our six years, Gradway has helped 236 students graduate from Kosciusko County schools, and has helped raise the county graduation rate from 75 percent to 91 percent.”

Yelp Foundation Gives Local is a contest that encourages the public to vote for nonprofits in their communities that support the Yelp Foundation’s mission of addressing the needs of local communities, including access to information, education, local economic development and freedom of expression.