Districtwide Fundraising and Parity of Program

By Ralph Mechur

The district's gift policy has been revised to require all funding for program with staff to come through the Education Foundation

Last year the Education Foundation raised $3.2 million, which was supplemented by $800,000 by the Board of Education, to fund the Vision for Student Success. Future funding of these programs will be determined by the communities of Santa Monica and Malibu raising $4 million minimum each year. Once $4 million is reached in any given year, any school is eligible to raise an additional $80,000 for any desired use.

Providing similar programs in all schools will allow for a stronger assessment of how effective our programs, administrators and teachers are. Through conversations with the Superintendent about what our educational template for all students should include, we are becoming a closer educational community focused on our mission of providing extraordinary achievement for all students while simultaneously closing the achievement gap.