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Partnerships for School Improvement
To engage parents, youth, and the broader community in activities to improve the quality of education in public schools.
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Bay Area Parent Leadership Action Network -
$60,000
Bay Area Parent Leadership Action Network (PLAN) addresses a lack of resources for parents working to improve public schools. PLAN prepares organizations to develop parent leaders, provides technical assistance to family support programs, and teaches low-income and immigrant families how they can participate in the public school system. With assistance from the Fund, PLAN is launching a parent-led campaign that focuses on giving parents of color greater capacity to engage in public school improvement.
Grant Amount:
$60,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.parentactionnet.org
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Californians for Justice Education Fund -
$40,000
Californians for Justice Education Fund organizes students and parents, locally and statewide, to help increase education funding and distribute it equitably. It works to improve the quality of education for underserved and disadvantaged students. The organization played a key role in drafting and passing an Oakland Unified School District policy that requires all students to take the courses required to attend a four-year university and it continues to monitor this policy's implementation. For these ongoing efforts, the organization receives Walter & Elise Haas support.
Grant Amount:
$40,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/14/2010 through 12/14/2011
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Center for Cities and Schools -
$100,000
Fiscal Sponsor: Regents of the University of California
Center for Cities and Schools facilitates collaboration between local governments and school districts to improve Bay Area public schools and their communities. Over the last three years, the Center supported partnerships in San Francisco, Oakland, Emeryville, Berkeley, and Richmond with research, education, and policy-making assistance. Projects included sharing school facilities with community members, involving students in city planning, and developing a school campus, adjacent to affordable housing, that offers comprehensive services. General operating support from the Fund helps the Center to extend its program to additional Bay Area municipalities and to deepen its work with current partners.
Grant Amount:
$100,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 04/02/2010 through 04/02/2011
Project Web Site: citiesandschools.berkeley.edu
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Coleman Advocates -
$60,000
Education organizing group Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth engages parents and youth in efforts to improve San Francisco public schools. In 2009, participants successfully lobbied for the adoption of a San Francisco Unified School District policy that requires every high school student to take the courses needed to attend the University of California or California State University. General operating support from the fund helps Coleman Advocates to monitor and support implementation of this new policy and to train parents at six focus schools with high percentages of African American and Latino students to become more involved in school-improvement efforts.
Grant Amount:
$60,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 04/02/2010 through 04/02/2011
Project Web Site: www.colemanadvocates.org
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Communities for Public Education Reform -
$40,000
Fiscal Sponsor: Public Interest Projects
Education funding, teacher quality, and community engagement in education improvement efforts: these are the priorities of Communities for Public Education Reform (CPER) California, part of Public Interests Projects. CPER California supports education non-profits working to improve student outcomes in low-income communities in Los Angeles, the Bay Area, and across the state. Grants from the project facilitate collaboration and capacity building in participating groups. The Walter & Elise Haas Fund supports the organization by joining its funding collaborative.
Grant Amount:
$40,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/13/2010 through 12/13/2011
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Community Alliance for Learning -
$25,000
Community Alliance for Learning recruits and trains community volunteers to work one-on-one with students, helping with English writing assignments. This WriterCoach Connection program held 13,208 regular sessions with students in 72 East Bay schools during the 2009-10 school year. Students served by the program show impressive gains in writing skills. Support from the Fund allows the organization to expand into additional Oakland schools in 2011.
Grant Amount:
$25,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/14/2010 through 12/14/2011
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A Community Concern -
$15,000
Fiscal Sponsor: Women Make Movies
A Community Concern is a film about organizing efforts that parents, youth, and community leaders led to improve the quality of public schools in Oakland, New York, and Boston. The Fund supported the film maker's development of an outreach plan and an accompanying curriculum that uses the film to share the lessons learned during organizing. Working in partnership with a Bay Area educator, the project strives to encourage school reform.
Grant Amount:
$15,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 08/26/2010 through 08/26/2011
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Mission Graduates -
$40,000
Mission Graduates works to increase the number of students in the Mission neighborhood of San Francisco who graduate high school and attend college. A grant from the W&EHF supports the organization's Parent Partner program, which trains parents to serve on English Learner Advisory Committees and helps them encourage educational improvements for English language learners. Parents also learn to deliver college awareness workshops to their peers using a home visit model.
Grant Amount:
$40,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/16/2010 through 07/16/2011
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Oakland Kids First -
$35,000
Oakland Kids First is a youth development organization for high school students. It responded when student leaders identified a lack of college counselors as an impediment to their attaining eligibility for University of California and California State universities. Oakland Kids First's PASS-2 program trains peer counselors on graduation requirements, the college application process, and transcript literacy. This general operating grant from the Fund supports extending the organization's work to additional Oakland Unified School District high schools so that more students can attend college.
Grant Amount:
$35,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 08/26/2010 through 08/26/2011
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Oakland Schools Foundation -
$60,000
Oakland Schools Foundation encourages schools to fundraise and develop collaboratively. Previously, its efforts helped a network of schools grow their family-engagement programs substantially, resulting in increased resources, technical support, and collaboration among principals and staff. The Foundation now needs to increase its capacity to reach more schools and to coordinate its efforts with school district reforms. The Fund continues to support its family-engagement work and as well as its internal capacity building.
Grant Amount:
$60,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.oaklandschoolsfoundation.org
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Parent Advisory Council -
$50,000
Fiscal Sponsor: Community Initiatives
Parent Advisory Council (PAC) provides a formal mechanism for parents to participate in shaping education policy in the San Francisco Unified School District. The Council engages parents in the school board's decision-making process, represents parents' concerns, and supports parents' participation in school governance. PAC, with Fund support, aims to overhaul ten SFUSD schools identified by the State as "persistently underperforming" by developing new governance structures and expanding promising programs.
Grant Amount:
$50,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.pacsf.org
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Parent Institute for Quality Education -
$20,000
Parent Institute for Quality Education promotes parent involvement in schools through a program that helps parents understand the critical role they play in education and the importance of expressing high expectations to their children. The program also covers how to establish open communications with school staff and navigate the school system, and outlines the requirements for college eligibility. Parent Institute will provide training to Oakland parents, to help them navigate the public school system and help their children improve their academic performance.
Grant Amount:
$20,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 09/28/2010 through 09/28/2011
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Parents for Public Schools of San Francisco -
$100,000
Parents for Public Schools is a prominent supporter of public education in San Francisco. It strives to engage and inform parents about the public school system and to prepare them to drive change within classrooms, schools, and districts. In 2011, Parents for Public Schools plans to build and maintain a network of current and prospective public school parents, to encourage public school enrollment, and to develop parent leaders across San Francisco. The Fund provides general operating support to help the organization and its members improve the quality of public education in San Francisco.
Grant Amount:
$100,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.ppssf.org
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Reading Partners -
$30,000
Reading Partners offers quality literacy intervention programs to low-income students in some of the most challenged schools in California. Last year, volunteer tutors assisted 855 students, bringing 64% of them up to grade level in reading. Reading Partners operates a dedicated classroom where volunteers provide individualized instruction to struggling readers using a structured, research-based curriculum and carefully selected books. The Fund's grant helps the organization provide tutoring in Oakland and San Francisco public schools.
Grant Amount:
$30,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 02/23/2010 through 02/23/2011
Project Web Site: www.readingpartners.org
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San Francisco Court Appointed Special Advocates -
$40,000
San Francisco Court Appointed Special Advocates trains volunteers to advocate for foster youth. Each volunteer partners with a child for a minimum of a year and a half to ensure the foster youth receives appropriate education, health care, and legal representation. This grant from the Fund helps provide volunteers with training about the San Francisco public school system and children's educational rights.
Grant Amount:
$40,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/14/2010 through 12/14/2011
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School Leadership
To help principals and teachers in leadership positions improve practices in schools that result in academic gains for all students.
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Alternatives in Action -
$50,000
Alternatives in Action has expanded to operate three public community schools in Alameda and Oakland. In partnership with school staff, youth, parents, and partner organizations, it coordinates these campuses so that they provide a full range of services to more than 600 students. Attendees and their families benefit from health services, counseling, robust after-school programs, and academic support.
Grant Amount:
$50,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
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California Budget Project -
$85,000
As California's budget woes continue to worsen, the California Budget Project helps clarify the complex fiscal policy which shapes services and governance. The Project has analyzed how the budget and budget proposals affect communities and families. It published papers on school finance and workforce development--two areas of expanded focus for the Project. In 2011, it also will examine how federal budget and policy decisions affect California. The organization extends its training on the budget process to community leaders and service providers. The Fund supports the Project with a $50,000 Education grant and a $35,000 grant from Other Grantmaking. The full grant amount is listed in both programs.
Grant Amount:
$85,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.cbp.org
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California History-Social Science Project -
$50,000
Fiscal Sponsor: Regents of the University of California
Established by the University of California's Office of the President, the California History-Social Science Project links academic researchers with teachers, students, and educators in California's K-12 schools. It has, since 1990, provided tools and training to improve instruction in history and social studies. The Project now strives to expand its offerings within school districts to deliver a more integrated, comprehensive suite of instructional supports and tools. A planning grant from the Fund helps design and pilot this project to improve history and social science education for California public school students.
Grant Amount:
$50,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: csmp.ucop.edu/chssp
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Internationals Network for Public Schools -
$60,000
In partnership with public school districts, Internationals Network for Public Schools operates schools that educate recently immigrated high school students who speak little English. The organization expanded to the Bay Area with the opening of a school in Oakland in 2007 and launched a second public high school in San Francisco in 2009. Support from the Fund helps train leaders and teachers at both Bay Area schools. The organization's skill in sharing educational resources, knowledge, and best practices across its schools contributes to their success.
Grant Amount:
$60,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 04/02/2010 through 04/02/2011
Project Web Site: www.internationalsnetwork.org
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National Equity Project -
$75,000
The National Equity Project works to increase the percentage of Bay Area students of color who graduate from high school prepared to attend a college or university. The Project provides targeted coaching to principals and teachers in English and math, and it assists teachers in identifying students who require specific academic attention. Their program shifts the focus from what is taught to what is learned. Teachers regularly examine evidence of student progress and adjust their teaching as required. The Fund supports the Project's efforts to address the needs of low-performing students.
Grant Amount:
$75,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.nationalequityproject.org
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New Leaders for New Schools -
$65,000
New Leaders for New Schools is a national organization that trains principals to serve urban public schools more effectively. Participating principals-in-training work in public schools with mentors for a year, and then receive five years of intensive support in heading their own schools. Over the next five years, New Leaders will focus on turning around the Oakland School District's lowest-performing schools by training and supporting principals and by refining the district wide system that supports leadership development. The Fund provides regional support to aid these efforts.
Grant Amount:
$65,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.nlns.org
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Partners in School Innovation -
$75,000
Partners in School Innovation has a strong track record of helping to close the achievement gap in low-performing public schools. It works with district leaders to plan district wide improvements; convenes district administrators, principals, and teachers to guide implementation in all schools; and intensively coaches principals and teachers at selected schools on how to increase students' reading proficiency. During the 2010-11 school year, Partners in School Innovation will provide services to seven of the San Francisco Unified School District's lowest performing schools.
Grant Amount:
$75,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.partnersinschools.org
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Pivot Learning Partners -
$60,000
With support from the Fund, Pivot Learning Partners is developing two technology tools for use in public school districts. The first tool, a user-friendly dashboard, integrates data about students' academic progress from the various district and state systems and makes this information accessible to students, parents, teachers, and principals. The second tool helps students select five adults and create an online network with them so they can receive mentoring and academic support.
Grant Amount:
$60,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.pivotlearningpartners.org
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Reach Institute for School Leadership -
$100,000
Reach Institute for School Leadership continues to develop teacher training and leadership programs as it seeks regional accreditation as a graduate school. The Institute offers three programs: an intern credential program for teachers in their first year; a teacher induction program for teachers in their second and third years; and an intensive training program for teachers to become instructional coaches, model teachers, and professional development facilitators. Teachers receive substantial classroom-based support and personalized professional development. The Fund provides the Reach Institute with general operating support.
Grant Amount:
$100,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 07/06/2010 through 07/06/2011
Project Web Site: www.reachinst.org
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San Francisco School Alliance Foundation -
$100,000
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. In 2010-11, the SFUSD requested Alliance assistance in helping senior administrators to implement its strategic plan. The Alliance convened key partners in response and is spearheading fundraising efforts. The Fund supports the Alliance's efforts to aid the SFUSD in improving the quality of education offered.
Grant Amount:
$100,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.sfschoolalliance.org
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Teacher Quality
To help teachers improve instructional skills to engage students in rigorous, academic pursuits.
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826 Valencia -
$50,000
826 Valencia delivers instructional support to students, cultivating their passion for writing. Teachers credit the organization with helping to improve both the quality and quantity of in-classroom writing instruction. In 2009, the organization's more than 1,400 tutors provided one-on-one assistance to 6,100 students and 150 teachers. Receiving general operating support from the Fund, 826 Valencia also runs Writers Rooms in two public middle schools.
Grant Amount:
$50,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 04/02/2010 through 04/02/2011
Project Web Site: www.826valencia.org
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Aim High for High School -
$25,000
In 2009, summer school provider Aim High for High School launched a math pilot program at four sites in the South Bay and San Francisco. The pilot offered students an intensive, structured, five-week math curriculum while a math specialist provided support to teachers. Expanding on the success of this pilot, Aim High implemented its math program at all of its summer school sites in summer 2010.
Grant Amount:
$25,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 05/07/2010 through 05/07/2011
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EdSource -
$65,000
EdSource was established before the passage of California's Proposition 13 in order to provide impartial, clarifying information about public education. It receives Fund support to develop a publication analyzing the proposed reforms in teacher evaluation, a process which is linked to student performance. EdSource's analysis helps stakeholders to develop a common understanding of how teacher effectiveness is measured and of how these measures relate to state and federal laws and policies.
Grant Amount:
$65,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.edsource.org
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Public Counsel -
$40,000
California public schools face another round of teacher layoffs in 2011. In schools that serve low-income students and which are staffed by newer teachers, it is not uncommon for every single teacher to receive a layoff notice. This institutional trauma undermines teacher training, instructional reform efforts, and teacher-student relationships. Public Counsel provides school districts with guidance on how to use existing laws and regulations to protect the most vulnerable schools from disproportionate layoffs. The Fund's grant supports the group's work to protect Bay Area schools.
Grant Amount:
$40,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/14/2010 through 12/14/2011
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San Francisco Education Fund -
$100,000
Recently merged with San Francisco School Volunteers, San Francisco Education Fund focuses on teacher quality, post-secondary school success, volunteer engagement, and student conflict mediation. With general operating support from the Haas Fund, the organization launches its new San Francisco Urban Teacher Residency to recruit, train, place, and retain quality teachers in public schools.
Grant Amount:
$100,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 04/02/2010 through 04/02/2011
Project Web Site: www.sfedfund.org
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San Francisco Unified School District, Sherman Elementary -
$35,000
In 2009, a small group of teachers at Sherman Elementary School traveled to Columbia University to learn a new approach to teaching reading. After launching the instructional model in their classrooms at Sherman Elementary, student reading proficiency increased so dramatically that other teachers requested training. The Fund's grant sends a second group of Sherman Elementary teachers to Columbia and funds visits by expert coaches throughout the upcoming school year. Through these efforts, Sherman Elementary will serve as a lab for other educators in San Francisco seeking to implement this instructional model.
Grant Amount:
$35,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 05/18/2010 through 05/18/2011
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Small Schools for Equity -
$45,000
Students have increased chances of success when they both believe in their ability to excel in school and have the self-discipline to apply themselves consistently. June Jordan School for Equity, a small public high school in San Francisco, helps its primarily African American, Latino, and working class students develop these skills by launching a rigorous teacher-training program. The training, supported by the Fund, uses video to analyze and improve instructional techniques. Staff will build a library of videos documenting successful practice to aid other educators.
Grant Amount:
$45,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/16/2010 through 12/16/2011
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Teach for America -
$60,000
Teach for America's Bay Area program supports 385 first- and second-year corps members who teach in Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose public schools. In addition to its growing teaching corps, increased numbers of program alumni stay in the education field after completing their two-year teaching commitment. Five percent of Bay Area principals and district administrators arrived through the program. Teach for America has focused recent efforts on improving both its pre- and post-classroom corp member training to improve the quality of education. The Fund supports Teach for America with a general operating grant.
Grant Amount:
$60,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.teachforamerica.org
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Teachers 4 Social Justice -
$15,000
Fiscal Sponsor: Community Initiatives
Teachers 4 Social Justice is a local grassroots effort providing peer-learning opportunities to Bay Area public school teachers and educators. It operates 30 local study groups for 10 to 15 teachers each year, offering each group of attendees an opportunity to improve their teaching practice. With support from the Fund, Teachers 4 Social Justice hopes to sustain and strengthen its work to improve the level of education in schools and to cultivate teacher leaders.
Grant Amount:
$15,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 12/06/2010 through 12/06/2011
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World Savvy -
$40,000
World Savvy educates and engages young people in community and world affairs by training teachers. In its Global Educators Program, teachers learn one-on-one how to integrate age-appropriate, contemporary world affairs into middle and high school classrooms. World Savvy uses the best curricula available on contemporary global issues and helps teachers create original lesson plans. General operating support from the Fund aids World Savvy in implementing professional development services for its Bay Area Global Educators Program.
Grant Amount:
$40,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 05/28/2010 through 05/28/2011
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Community Partnerships
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Friends of the San Francisco Public Library -
$100,000
As the Branch Library Improvement Program renovates and constructs branch libraries, the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library collects funds to supply the furniture, fixtures, and equipment that transforms buildings into places that foster learning and community. The Fund supports this organization's efforts to outfit newly renovated branches in the Bayview, Visitacion Valley, and Sunset neighborhoods. In addition to supplying standard materials, the group has invited residents near each branch to identify needs particular to their community so that the educational value of libraries effectively reaches the populace.
Grant Amount:
$100,000 [2010]
Project Dates: 11/22/2010 through 11/22/2011
Project Web Site: www.friendssfpl.org
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