Grants Listing: Education program

Regarded by the Oakland Unified School District as a model community school, Alternatives in Action was asked to assist out two others to build out their programs, one in East Oakland and one in West Oakland. The organization now coordinates all three full-service schools in partnership with school staff, youth, parents, and partner organizations. These campuses serve more than 600 high school students, many of whose families live below the poverty level. Students and their families benefit from health services, counseling, robust after-school programs, and academic supports to supplement classroom learning.
Grant Amount: $50,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.alternativesinaction.org

Bay Area Parent Leadership Action Network unites parent-serving organizations to provide training, leadership development, and assistance organizing in public schools. Its intensive capacity-building training, called PLAN to Lead, prepares organizations and schools to work with and develop parent leaders within their communities. PLAN also offers a six-week training that teaches parents of young children to advocate for their rights in the public education system. It contracts with school districts to engage parents in school improvement efforts, disseminates information about educational policy, and works on statewide education policy issues.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.parentactionnet.org

Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth engages parents and youth in improving San Francisco public schools. Members worked within the San Francisco Unified School District to implement a policy that requires every public high school student to take the courses needed to attend California's universities. Its organizing and leadership efforts continue to ensure the district is held accountable for implementing the policy and to provide the community support crucial to the policy's success. The Fund provides Coleman Advocates with general operating support so that the organization can continue to narrow the achievement gap.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: www.colemanadvocates.org

A group of San Francisco parents, frustrated with diminishing funding for their children’s public schools, organized Educate Our State. Their initial public event drew 1,000 people and presented an opportunity to mobilize other parents. The group expanded its work to the state level in order to tackle fiscal reform, coordinating its efforts with groups representing other constituents. This grant from the Fund supported Educate Our State’s organizing training in Los Angeles, which drew parents from across California.
Grant Amount: $5,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 09/23/2011 through 12/15/2011
Project Web Site: www.educateourstate.org/

Mission Graduates works to increase the number of Mission neighborhood students who graduate from high school and go on to attend college. The organization offers school-based programs that reach 1,100 youth and their families each year, helping them access educational services. The Fund supports Mission Graduates’ training of Mission "parent promotores" to serve on English Learner Advisory Committees at their children’s schools and deliver college awareness workshops to other parents. In this capacity, parents support educational improvements for English-language learners.
Grant Amount: $40,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 09/29/2011 through 09/29/2012
Project Web Site: www.missiongraduates.org/

Oakland Schools Foundation garners resources for small public schools, helping a network of them to build their family-engagement programs collaboratively. The Foundation raised funds to support its network while they convened regular meetings for representatives from the nine participating schools. Network members saw substantial gains in family engagement and this resulted in increased resources, technical support, and collaboration among principals and staff. Through its work, the Oakland Schools Foundation established itself as a valuable resource for cultivating community engagement.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.oaklandschoolsfoundation.org

Fiscal Sponsor: Community Initiatives
Parent Advisory Council gives parents a formal mechanism for influencing the San Francisco Unified School District’s education policy. In 2010, the Council facilitated conversations about policies that affect the district—engaging parents in discussions, identifying suggestions for improving schools, and representing parent perspectives to shape district initiatives. During 2011, Council members will identify critical issues including aligning the district’s core curriculum, redesigning how the district delivers special education services, and implementing reforms to improve persistently underperforming schools. Through the Council, parents receive information about important reforms such as these, and are able to add their voices to decision-making processes.
Grant Amount: $50,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.pacsf.org

Parents for Public Schools is a prominent supporter of public education in San Francisco and an indispensable organization for parents seeking information about public schools. It engages and informs parents about the school system and prepares them to lead change within the district. Each year it tackles timely issues, providing information and training about the district’s efforts in its lowest-performing sites. The organization plans to build its network of public school parents, encourage public school enrollment, and develop parent leaders. Staff will also continue in their role as central players in public school reform efforts.
Grant Amount: $100,000 [2011] , $100,000 [2012]
Project Dates: 11/18/2011 through 11/18/2013
Project Web Site: www.ppssf.org

Nationwide, there is growing interest in changing teacher compensation to better reflect the needs of districts and schools. With the implementation of the Quality Teacher and Education Act (QTEA), the San Francisco Unified School District took a step toward increasing and restructuring teacher compensation. In 2011, Policy Analysis for California Education is conducting year two of a three-year evaluation to investigate how each element of the QTEA policy affects teacher outcomes. This includes assessing teacher recruitment, retention, and overall teaching skill.
Grant Amount: $25,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 05/31/2011 through 05/31/2012
Project Web Site: www.stanford.edu/group/pace/cgi-bin/wordpress/

Communities for Public Education Reform (CPER), a project of Public Interest Projects, connects local and national funders so they can provide grants and technical assistance to groups working to improve student outcomes in low-income communities. It supports nonprofits in three priority areas: education funding, teacher quality, and community engagement in education improvement. Grants from CPER facilitate collaboration and capacity building among participating groups. Support from the Fund goes to the organization's work to improve education in California.
Grant Amount: $40,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 12/20/2011 through 12/20/2012
Project Web Site: www.communitiesforpubliceducationreform.org/

Reading Partners offers literacy-intervention programs to low-income students in some of the most challenged schools in California. On standardized assessments, 64% of students who were behind grade level in reading when they started the Reading Partners program had completely caught up by the end of the first year. At each of its schools, Reading Partners has a dedicated classroom where volunteers work one-on-one with struggling readers, teaching them skills, comprehension, and a love for reading. Tutors commit to work in the centers for one year and receive ongoing training.
Grant Amount: $30,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 08/10/2011 through 08/10/2012
Project Web Site: readingpartners.org/

The San Francisco Education Fund continues to support the San Francisco Unified School District with teacher quality, post-secondary school success, volunteer engagement, and student conflict mediation programs. It recently launched its Urban Teacher Residency program to recruit, train, place, and retain quality teachers. The program has prospective teachers combine their master's coursework with a mentored, full-year residency in an urban school. In their second year, these teachers lead classes on their own and receive ongoing coaching. In 2011, with general operating support from the Walter & Elise Haas Fund, the Education Fund will continue to build its Urban Teacher Residency program and operate its other important programs.
Grant Amount: $100,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: www.sfedfund.org

Fiscal Sponsor: Regents of the University of California
The Center for Cities and Schools conducts research, provides education, and facilitates collaborative policymaking between local governments and school districts to improve Bay Area public schools and the urban communities in which they are located. The Center's experience fostering collaboration will grow in importance if Governor Brown's proposal shifting management and delivery of multiple services to the local level passes. The proposal would necessitate closer collaboration between counties, cities, and school districts to ensure alignment and coordination of services for youth.
Grant Amount: $80,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: citiesandschools.berkeley.edu

Chinese for Affirmative Action advocates for Asian and Pacific Islander immigrants in San Francisco, using education and workforce development to increase their access to opportunity. Prior support from the Fund's education program helped develop and grow the group's Visitacion Valley Parents Association, which trains Cantonese-speaking parents and helps them participate in their children's schooling. In 2011, Chinese for Affirmative Action will continue to work with the school district to develop policies supporting immigrant students and families. The organization will also provide direct job-search and placement services along with advocacy on job access issues. This grant is split between the Fund's Education and Economic Security programs, $30,000 and $20,000 respectively. The listing has been duplicated in both areas.
Grant Amount: $50,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.caasf.org

Fiscal Sponsor: Regents of the University of California
Leadership Connection for Justice in Education is the leading trainer of local principals. Its mission is to prepare a diverse cadre of high-quality principals to lead Bay Area public schools. Leadership Connection offers a three-year induction program and a coaching initiative that trains current principals to earn their permanent administrative credentials while improving their on-the-job skills. With support from the Fund, it will continue its training and pilot two evaluation tools to measure principal effectiveness.
Grant Amount: $50,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: principals.berkeley.edu

Despite some incremental improvements in Bay Area schools, the achievement gap continues to threaten a large number of students. The National Equity Project offers targeted coaching in English and math; assists principals and teachers to identify “focal students”; and supports work to meet these students’ specific academic needs. It has expanded to six school districts—with its biggest presence in Oakland—and it has refined its work with participating schools. Results from 2011 indicate that support of focal students increases not only their learning but that of their classmates as well.
Grant Amount: $75,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 11/18/2011 through 11/18/2012
Project Web Site: www.nationalequityproject.org

New Haven Unified School District serves 13,000 students in Union City. Recently, Instructional Leadership Teams at all district schools have been charged with improving reading and writing through the expansion of critical thinking skills. Teams developed guiding questions for their colleagues and invited other teams to observe classes and report back, using the guiding questions as a road map. This new model has the potential to assist other, larger districts in grappling with similar instructional challenges.
Grant Amount: $80,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: www.nhusd.k12.ca.us

New Leaders for New Schools recruits and trains principals to lead and improve struggling schools. By the end of a 15-month residency including coursework and hands-on experience, each participating principal takes the helm at low-performing and under-resourced school. New Leaders recognizes that public school districts will have fewer openings for new principals as positions are consolidated. In response, it has expanded its programs to include intensive training of high-potential teachers and assistant principals, helping them to become better instructional leaders in their current positions. Using this new strategy, New Leaders will reach and train more educators, building staff capacity to bolster reform efforts.
Grant Amount: $65,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.nlns.org

Partners in School Innovation trains elementary school principals to reshape and strengthen literacy instruction. It serves as the lead organization supporting schools in the San Francisco Unified School District's Superintendent's Zones—two neighborhoods targeted for educational reforms due to their large number of underperforming schools. The organization supports teachers in planning standards-based lessons that engage students; observing lessons and coaching; analyzing and making instructional adjustments based on student data; and using interventions tailored for struggling learners. It will also coach the district administrators charged with overseeing the Superintendent’s Zones and facilitate strategic planning meetings to narrow the achievement gap.
Grant Amount: $75,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.partnersinschools.org

Pivot Learning Partners, with support from the Fund, seeks to expand use of their pilot technology tool in school districts and youth organizations. The tool is a social networking application modeled after popular networking sites like Facebook. Using the tool, youth identify five known, trusted adults in their lives. The students and their chosen mentors then set academic goals together and track progress towards those goals.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 11/18/2011 through 11/18/2012
Project Web Site: www.pivotlearningpartners.org

Reach Institute for School Leadership grew, with support from the Fund, from an idea shared by a group of teachers and educators into a full-fledged graduate school of education. It credentials teachers and offers a leadership academy that trains teacher leaders to become instructional coaches, model teachers, and professional-development facilitators. Reach has received a competitive Teacher Incentive Fund grant from the federal government. This allows it to pilot a model for measuring teacher performance and to provide teachers with incentives and supports to improve their practice. The Walter & Elise Haas Fund provides general operating support to the Reach Institute.
Grant Amount: $100,000 [2011] , $85,000 [2012] , $70,000 [2013]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.reachinst.org

The San Francisco School Alliance exists to provide the San Francisco Unified School District with technical and financial support to implement educational reforms, to report the results of these efforts, and to garner support and investment from stakeholders. This general operating grant from the Fund allows the Alliance to build its internal capacity to expand its support of SFUSD's education reform efforts.
Grant Amount: $100,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 11/18/2011 through 11/18/2012
Project Web Site: www.sfschoolalliance.org

Aim High for High School provides quality summer school programs to middle school students throughout the Bay Area. In 2009, with support from the Fund, Aim High launched a math pilot program that incorporates experiential learning. This 2011 grant supports professional development for Aim High’s San Francisco teachers. It also funds training teachers to pass along the skills they acquire through the program.
Grant Amount: $25,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 09/29/2011 through 09/29/2012
Project Web Site: www.aimhigh.org

In 2007, the Center for Wellness and Achievement in Education launched a comprehensive meditation program at Visitacion Valley Middle School. It was an unusual intervention in a school struggling with the highest suspension and teacher-turnover rates in the school district. Staff taught teachers and students how to use transcendental meditation to combat stress and increase mental function. After only one year, teacher absences due to illness dropped 30%. After three years, teacher turnover dropped to zero, removing the school from the “hard-to-staff” list. Student suspensions now are among the lowest in the district, down from 28% to 4%, and students’ grades and test scores have increased significantly. The program has expanded to three more schools.
Grant Amount: $40,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 08/10/2011 through 08/10/2012

In the Exploratorium's Teacher Institute, new science teachers learn from their more experienced peers and obtain access to ongoing support. All of the training is subject specific and focuses on a learning-by-doing model using the Exploratorium's exhibits as instructional tools. Previous support from the Fund helped establish the Museum's teacher-induction program, which trains teachers to coach in the Teacher Institute. In 2011, the Fund's grant enables the Exploratorium to build out a rigorous, two-year training program for mid-career teachers. This program allows teachers to deepen their skills, prepares them to enter the leadership program, and encourages them to remain in the teaching profession.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: www.exploratorium.org

Great Oakland Public Schools Information Center was established to increase knowledge about and engagement in Oakland public schools. It convenes meetings and facilitates dialogues on a range of critical issues, including effective teaching, school and district leadership, student assignment, and school budgeting. Staff track public school strategic planning efforts, serve on task forces, attend board of education meetings, and report to the community. Through the dissemination of information, Great Oakland Public Schools seeks to engage Oakland citizens in education policy discussions at the local, state, and federal levels to improve public schools.
Grant Amount: $25,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 05/31/2011 through 05/31/2012
Project Web Site: www.gopublicschools.org/

The Internationals Network for Public Schools, in partnership with public school districts, creates schools that educate high school students who have recently arrived in the United States and who speak little English. The organization began in New York, expanded to the Bay Area in 2007, and now operates high schools in Oakland and San Francisco. Schools receive instructional, operational, and development support from the Network in addition to regular funding from their local school district. Sharing educational resources, knowledge, and best practices throughout the network has been key to the organization's success. The Fund's grant supports the Network's effective training of leaders and teachers at their two Bay Area schools.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 04/04/2011 through 04/04/2012
Project Web Site: www.internationalsnetwork.org

Mills College's Teacher Scholars program guides teams of East Bay public school teachers to build collaborative learning communities in which they can investigate their own questions about student learning. The model is based on research showing that teachers who participate in learning communities are much more likely to both remain in teaching and to improve their practice. During the 2011-12 school year, with support from the Fund, Teacher Scholars will serve 100 teachers from East Bay schools, helping them to ask questions about their teaching, gather and analyze data about how students learn, work with colleagues to understand how to use this data in their classrooms, and improve their instruction.
Grant Amount: $50,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.mills.edu

New Teacher Center, a national leader in teacher training, has partnered with the Oakland Unified School District to develop and pilot a plan for gauging the effectiveness of its beginning-teacher support programs. This pilot will help New Teacher Center to create a toolkit that other California school districts can use to evaluate their own beginning-teacher support programs. It will identify areas of needed improvement and help develop a plan for addressing them.
Grant Amount: $60,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.newteachercenter.org

Refugee Transitions recruits, trains, and supports adult volunteers to provide weekly tutoring and social and emotional support to youth in San Francisco and Oakland. The organization partners with the Oakland and San Francisco International High Schools, which serve recently arrived students. This grant from the fund both helps Refugee Transitions to offer tutoring four days a week at both school campuses and to connect parents with volunteers who provide English and civics tutoring.
Grant Amount: $20,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 05/31/2011 through 05/31/2012
Project Web Site: www.reftrans.org/

Fiscal Sponsor: San Francisco Coalition of Essential Small Schools
In 2009, a group of teachers from Sherman Elementary School in San Francisco traveled to Columbia University to study a new approach to teaching reading with an emphasis on comprehension. Afterwards, their student’s reading proficiency increased so dramatically that other teachers requested the same training. Now, with support from the Fund, three additional San Francisco public schools will implement this literacy model. Principals from participating schools have formed a learning collaborative to share Columbia University’s professional development training and Sherman Elementary classrooms will serve as a learning lab for teachers. San Francisco Coalition of Essential Small Schools provides fiscal sponsorship and facilitates the collaboration.
Grant Amount: $65,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 07/06/2011 through 07/06/2012
Project Web Site: www.sfusd.edu

Fiscal Sponsor: Community Initiatives
Teachers 4 Social Justice provides peer-learning opportunities for Bay Area public school teachers and community educators. The core of its work is the offering of 30 local study groups per year. For the teachers, each group is an opportunity to improve their practice and improve group facilitation skills. Teachers 4 Social Justice has grown over the last decade and now works to strengthen teacher leaders within the organization in order to sustain and enhance its work.
Grant Amount: $15,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 09/29/2011 through 09/29/2012
Project Web Site: www.t4sj.org/

With prior funding, World Savvy piloted an initiative to provide comprehensive professional development support to cohorts of up to ten teachers at five Bay Area partner schools. Participating schools integrated global issues into their curricula in all academic subjects, strengthened professional development, and improved collaboration. This 2011 grant from the Fund supports World Savvy in expanding the depth and breadth of its key programs, in building organizational capacity, and in advocating for global competency in instruction.
Grant Amount: $40,000 [2011]
Project Dates: 09/29/2011 through 09/29/2012
Project Web Site: worldsavvy.org

The Exploratorium has outgrown its home at the Palace of Fine Arts and is building a new, state-of-the-art facility on the Embarcadero. This new facility will be located on Piers 15 and 17 and will allow the Exploratorium to double the number of visitors it can accommodate each year. The Fund’s grant supports this capital investment. The Exploratorium will also be producing advertising, exhibition materials, and educational programs in Spanish as well as English with the particular goal of attracting more Latino visitors.
Grant Amount: $271,500 [2011] , $114,250 [2012] , $114,250 [2013]
Project Dates: 11/18/2011 through 11/18/2012
Project Web Site: www.exploratorium.org