News From REF: Extended Day-A Great Investment More Students Deserve

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News From

Ravenswood Education Foundation

April 2012
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HIGHLIGHTS

Extended Day: A Great Investment More Students Deserve
A Surge of Community Support Coming April 28th & 29th Weekend
REF Volunteer Ventures: Growing to Boost Outcomes
A Young Volunteer Exemplifies the Giving Spirit with Book Donations
THANK YOU, MICROSOFT!!! REF Earns $250,000 Software Grant from New Microsoft Store
Upcoming Events

ONLY A FEW TICKETS LEFT! Friday, May 4th REF hosts its 5th Annual Benefit at the Four Seasons in East Palo Alto (Click for more info)

THANK YOU TO OUR GALA DIAMOND SPONSORS:

Extended Day: A Great Investment More Students Deserve

REF provides financial support enabling extended school days at five District campuses. Always looking for the best return on the funds we invest, REF has recognized the broad benefits and overwhelmingly positive response from principals, teachers, staff, parents and students resulting from these initiatives. As a result, REF has committed to expanding the opportunities for extended day to all District students.

The example set by Brentwood Academy, which has been using an extended school model for several years, highlights how increased learning time also can boost teaching quality. "The way our schedule is organized every team has at least 40 minutes a day to plan, analyze data, and share ideas with each other," says Brentwood Principal Tami Espinosa. "I know that the teachers appreciate the time to plan and analyze data together and it helps them become more competent and confident in what they do."

Brentwood's schedule allows students to take otherwise unavailable classes in art, music, physical education, and life skills taught by credentialed teachers. "We know that by accessing every part of the child's brain, the students will be even more

5th graders at Brentwood Academy take art class, made possible by the extended day schedule.

successful in the core areas," says Principal Espinosa. Despite 94% of its students being socioeconomically disadvantaged and 74% who are English language learners, Brentwood has been significantly improving in its standardized test scores, performing well above the average of all California schools.

"We feel so strongly about the benefits in academic outcomes tied to extended learning time that we have singled out this initiative for our "Fund-A-Need" fundraising to take place at our annual benefit on May 4th," said REF Executive Director Renu Nanda. "For only approximately $250 per student, we can broaden the reach of this proven intervention. So we are looking to rally even more supporter attention where we can be making the greatest difference."

A Surge of Community Support Coming April 28th & 29th Weekend

Volunteers from across the Peninsula will be visiting District campuses this coming April 28th and 29th as part of a series of service projects coordinated by the Menlo Park Presbyterian Church as part of its annual Compassion Weekend. Facilities will be cleaned and maintained, trees planted, and teacher/student supply kits assembled across different campuses including Brentwood Academy, Ronald McNair Academy, Willow Oaks Elementary, and the Ravenswood Child Development Center.

Cesar Chavez Elementary will simultaneously host a community yard sale offering used clothing, electronics and other household items to raise funds for REF parent outreach initiatives. Local families and vendors will also be selling a wide variety of mouth-watering food and refreshments.

For more information, including volunteer sign-up, please visit www.mppc.org or call 650-323-8600.

REF Volunteer Ventures: Growing to Boost Outcomes
All Students Matter, a REF volunteer initiative offering tutoring to District schools, and REF's Adopt-a-Teacher Program, which provides valuable supplies to classrooms, exemplify the inexhaustible drive of caring community members to help more students succeed.

All Students Matter started in 2008 with a few volunteers assisting in several classrooms. Now the effort boasts 45 volunteers committed to in-class tutoring on a regular basis at Belle Haven, Cesar Chavez, Green Oaks and Costano schools. In addition, the group coordinates after school tutors from local high schools Sacred Heart, Menlo-Atherton, and Woodside Priory, and a network of 180 volunteers who provide quarterly distribution of classroom supplies.

2nd Graders at Belle Haven enjoy classwork with their All Students Matter tutor.

Says one Belle Haven second grade teacher, "Having the All Students Matter volunteers in my classroom is amazing. Whether it's reading one-on-one with students, helping with writing assignments, or lending support with behavior issues, the volunteers are hard-working, hands-on, and seem truly passionate about wanting to help in anyway they can."

Volunteers now have many inspiring stories that they eagerly share, such as a 5th grader who credits the care and extra attention of his All Students Matter tutor with keeping him from giving up on school.

And according to Carolyn Blatman, volunteer coordinator for All Students Matter, the effort will continue to grow until the long term goal of getting more local parents in the classroom has been achieved.

Adopt-a-Teacher began in 2009 and, according to volunteer coordinator Stacy Zell, has gone from supporting 40 teachers at three schools to now serving 101 teachers in six of the District's schools. Each teacher receives $500 to $600 in supplies (otherwise gone without or purchased by the teacher with personal funds), gifts of appreciation, and resources for two class parties. The volunteer pool now includes Girl Scout troupes, community members, parent groups from Woodside, and Facebook employees, to name a few of those participating.

A Young Volunteer Exemplifies the Giving Spirit with Book Donation

Riley, a Menlo Park resident, collected 601 books and donated them this past fall to Costano and the 49ers Academy. Earlier in the year, she collected and donated over 300 books to Willow Oaks.

REF Earns $250,000 in Tech Grants from New Microsoft Store

REF received a $250,000 software grant from Microsoft which will provide much-needed new software in the District. Microsoft senior executive Dan'l Lewen

Microsoft's Dan'l Lewen presents a check for the $250,000 software grant to REF's Executive Director Renu Nanda (middle) and Superintendent Maria De La Vega

presented the grant to REF Executive Director Renu Nanda and Superintendent Maria De La Vega at opening day ceremonies for the new Microsoft Store

at the Stanford Shopping Center on April 19th.

Sue Allen, District technology coordinator and member of the REF board, helped spearhead the campaign to gather the necessary votes needed from community supporters to qualify for the grant. Over many weeks, votes were cast online at the Facebook page of the new Microsoft Store.

In addition to software, the grant also will provide for teacher and staff training to be conducted at the new store.

Upcoming Events

April 28-29: Compassion Weekend Service Projects will be conducted across District campuses
May 4: REF's 5th Annual Benefit Gala will take place at the Four Seasons in East Palo Alto

Please click the above image for more information, including details on sponsorship opportunities.

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The vision of the Ravenswood Education Foundation is to help foster educational outcomes in the Ravenswood City School District that are on par with those of students from the surrounding communities.

Please visit our website www.RavenswoodEF.org to donate online or contact Executive Director Renu Nanda for more information about how to volunteer or lend your expertise to improving our Ravenswood schools. Call 650.539.9577 or email rnanda@ravenswoodef.org.

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