Share With Those in Need

This Holiday Season 

As has been our tradition in years past, during this holiday season we highlight local community nonprofit organizations helping those in need. What better gift than to share with those in need with your time, financial contribution or purchasing items on community organization wish lists. Can't think of what to get that someone special who has everything? Why not honor him or her with a donation to a worthy nonprofit.

There are many agencies seeking help this holiday season and all year long. Here are just a few ideas to get you started:

Peninsula Family Service provides children, families and older adults support and tools to realize their full potential and lead healthy, stable lives. Their wish list includes items such as books, toys and puzzles for their 10 child development centers. Donations can be dropped off at their office at 24 Second Avenue in San Mateo, Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Your new or increased financial contribution will be matched 2:1, thanks to a matching grant from the Sobrato Family Foundation.

Samaritan House in San Mateo serves more than 12,000 low-income families and individuals throughout the year in San Mateo County. You can volunteer your time at their Toy Shoppe on December 19 or 20 at the San Mateo Event Center, 1346 Saratoga Drive, San Mateo. There are many volunteer opportunities such as handing out gifts, making crafts with children or wrapping gifts. There are a variety of jobs are available each day but space is limited and you must sign up in advance here.

You can bring items from their wish list to their administrative office at 4031 Pacific Blvd. in San Mateo, Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 12 p.m and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. through the end of December. During the holiday season they are especially in need of gift cards to food and clothing stores, gifts for children and teens, educational toys, non-perishable food items and holiday foods such as ham, turkey and chicken. You can also purchase items from their Amazon wish list and have them shipped directly to Samaritan House.

with offices in San Carlos and San Jose, serves 1 in 10 needy residents (mostly seniors and low-income families with children) and provides food for 250,000 in the two counties. Their Kids N.O.W. program provides free, nutritious, and easy-to-prepare food to take home on weekends and over school vacations when other resources such as free or reduced-cost school lunches are not available.

In addition to their distribution warehouses in San Carlos and San Jose, their barrels can be found at a variety of locations including Safeway, Whole Foods and San Mateo County libraries. They are especially in need of meals in a can, such as soups and stews, as well as canned fruit, canned foods with pop-top lids, canned meats and low-sodium vegetables. Also needed are low-sugar cereals and peanut butter in plastic jars. Volunteers are needed for a variety of activities. Find out more here. 

Cash donations are especially appreciated, as with every dollar the organization can purchase two meals, and the cash helps them meet the food needs of their clients throughout the year.

The Children's Fund of San Mateo County serves more than 4,600 low-income and foster children, newborn to age 18, throughout the year in San Mateo County. Their holiday program serves approximately 3,500 children, and for many these are the only gifts they receive. Children submit a wish list and volunteers help fill their wishes. Gift cards and new toys, board games, art supplies and sports equipment for children of all ages are needed. Drop off to Holiday Central at 1 Davis Drive in Belmont. Call 650-802-5152 or email childrensfund@smchsa.org for more information.

DonorsChoose is a national organization linking donors to classrooms in need. On their website, you can see specific projects that teachers have requested funds for, locally and across the country. Locally, requests range from donating for iPads and interactive games for a high-poverty classroom in San Mateo to advanced books for a STEM magnet school in San Bruno. You can designate your financial contribution in any amount to the project you choose.

Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF)  awards grants to community organizations in the areas of education, regional planning and community safety net services, and is the region's leader for innovative charitable solutions. The Silicon Valley Community Foundation, along with the San Mateo County Office of Education and the County of San Mateo, is a partner and funder of the Peninsula Partnership Leadership Council, which addresses the needs and fosters the healthy development of children, youth and families in San Mateo County. In 2013, SVCF also launched the Silicon Valley Common Core Initiative (SVCCI), an ambitious three-year effort to encourage a collaborative approach to implementing the Common Core State Standards among the 54 school districts in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. SVCF provides resources, hosts informational meetings, and brings school districts together to identify the needs around the Common Core. So far 27 local districts are collaborating thanks to SVCCI grants, affecting nearly 150,000 students, and more than 500 teachers have received training on methods that encourage students to think critically, creatively and collaboratively.

JustGive is your online destination if you'd like to give the gift of charitable giving to someone on your holiday list. At this website you can purchase a gift card that the recipient can use to give to the charity of his or her choice, whether it be local or international.

PPLC and The Big Lift Launch Big Plans for San Mateo County

  

At the December 2, 2014 meeting of the Peninsula Partnership Leadership Council (PPLC) at the San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE), a sense of momentum was in the air for the Big Lift, the countywide effort to increase third-grade reading proficiency from 58 percent to 80 percent by 2020. The PPLC Big Lift effort has grown since it began in 2012 with 19 organizations and 32 leaders. At this meeting, representatives from 170 member organizations were invited and nearly 100 were present.

 

(l. to r.)  Erica Wood, Ralph Smith, Carole Groom and  Anne Campbell at the Peninsula Partnership Leadership Council meeting.

Special guest speaker at the December 2 meeting was Ralph Smith, Managing Director for the Campaign for Grade Level Reading at the Anne E. Casey Foundation. He spoke about the national movement to increase reading proficiency by third grade and the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading's four pillars: a comprehensive school readiness strategy focused on high-quality preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds, leading to an aligned and sequenced set of high-quality learning experiences in kindergarten through third grade; a focus on reducing chronic absence in the early grades; inspiring summer learning opportunities; and strengthening family and community engagement.

 

"There are 152 communities in 39 states targeting this work," he said. "And San Mateo County is ahead of the pack. What you have here is enormous stewardship from the public sector."

 

 "We're at a really exciting inflection point with the Big Lift," said Erica Wood, Chief Community Impact Officer for the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF). "We're entering the next big frontier of implementation."

 

SVCF, a key partner with SMCOE and the County of San Mateo, is the recipient of a $7.5 million grant over three years from the federal government's Social Innovation Fund (SIF), which will be directed toward the Big Lift and one of its key focus areas-- providing quality preschool and additional preschool slots. SVCF may qualify for an additional $9 million in funding for a fourth and fifth year, pending Congressional appropriations and evidence of the program's success.

 

Information Sessions Attract Close to 100 Attendees

 

Following the PPLC meeting, information sessions on December 4 and 9 were held at the Redwood City Library and SMCOE, attracting close to  

100 attendees from school districts, preschools and community agencies to learn more about the RFP process and requirements for SIF grantees. 

"With this

Jessica Mihaly presents information about the SIF grant for grant applicants.

RFP we are looking to communities in our 11 targeted school district areas where 2013-14 third-grade reading proficiency scores 

were close to or below the county average: Bayshore, Brisbane, Cabrillo, Jefferson Elementary, La Honda-Pescadero, Pacifica, Ravenswood, Redwood City, San Bruno Park, San Mateo-Foster City and South San Francisco. We are looking for communities coming together, ready to go to take bold steps to narrow the achievement gap and improve outcomes for children," said Jessica Mihaly, SIF Initiative Officer at the SVCF. The SVCF anticipates funding two to four grantees in this first round.

 

Although much of the SIF grant will go toward increasing quality preschool spaces in the county, the goal is about much more than preschool. "It's about a collective set of impacts," notes Mihaly. The RFP requires co-lead agencies (school districts, preschools, community partners) to come together. "We've seen remarkable partnerships among community organizations. The Big Lift is a much stronger initiative than any of us could do on our own."

 

Mihaly anticipates that the SVCF SIF grant will fund two to four proposals in the first round. Applications are due February 2, 2015. Complete information on the grant requirements, RFP, resources and FAQ can be found on the SVCF website.

 

  

  

Two SM County Superintendents Attend White House Summit  

On Wednesday, Nov. 19, 110 of the nation's top superintendents, U.S. Department of Education officials and representatives from education organizations, met with President Obama at the White House for the Superintendents' Summit, "ConnectED to the Future." Among those invited were 18 from California including two from San Mateo County: Dr. Lisa Gonzales, Portola Valley superintendent, and Diane Tavenner, co-founder and CEO of Summit Public Schools, a charter network with two high schools in the Sequoia Union High School District.

Top superintendents from across the country, including two from San Mateo County, gather at the White House for the "ConnectED to the Future" Summit.

These superintendents were recognized for their leadership in helping transition their districts to digital learning and developing a culture where teachers use technology to personalize learning and provide digital content to foster student inquiry and creativity.

At the summit, Gonzales and Tavenner had the opportunity to meet the President, participate in small working groups and panel discussions with other dynamic superintendents, and connect with nonprofit organizations that have education technology resources to share. 

 President Barack Obama also hosted a digital pledge signing ceremony with the superintendents who were present, and hundreds more from around the country who participated virtually. They pledged to transform their districts into ones that better prepare students for their future through digital learning. The event built on the President's ConnectED Initiative aimed at providing public and private funding to expand high speed Internet connectivity in schools and libraries.

In addition to her role as superintendent, Gonzales is vice-president for legislation action with the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), an active member of the Technology
Information Center for Administrative Leadership (TICAL), where she is a certified trainer with Leading Edge Administrator certification in digital leadership, and a past member of the California Department of Education Tech Task Force.

"Being at the Summit was unbelievably exciting," she says. In addition to meeting the President, she said it was valuable to make connections with the other superintendents and have "great conversations" sharing their common needs and best practices.

Tavenner noted that Summit Public Schools are "incredibly aligned with the vision of ConnectED." The charter network has built a tech platform where students set goals, give and get feedback, have access to 1,000 content-oriented playlists and drive their own learning. "We have redesigned our schools from the student perspective," Tavenner notes.

Summit is currently looking for other school partners across the country to adopt their open-to-all tech platform. "I was very inspired to work with other like-minded superintendents at the ConnectED Summit who are doing this work with passion and a clear commitment," Tavenner added.

 As a follow-up, Tavenner and Gonzales are currently working with other superintendents in the region and the U.S. Department of Education to organize a Bay Area ConnectED Summit to be held this spring.

Cabrillo School District Snags Spot on AP District Honor Roll

Since 2012, Cabrillo Unified School District has steadily increased the number of students participating in the College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Program while improving the number of students earning AP exam scores of 3 or higher. As a result, this fall the district was honored by the College Board with placement on the fifth annual AP District Honor Roll.

Cabrillo is one of 547 school districts in the United States and Canada, one of 35 in California, and the only district in San Mateo County to receive this honor. "This honor recognizes the significant progress Half Moon Bay High School has made in expanding both the number of AP courses and in ensuring students taking these courses reflect our diverse student population," said Superintendent Tony Roehrick. "Opening courses and expanding access was the easiest part of the equation. Having these students experience such tremendous success reflects the school's commitment to our students. This honor is further evidence of the outstanding educational opportunities the school, and our district, provides for our community. I am very proud of the students, teachers, and administrators at Half Moon Bay High School for this achievement. This was not by accident, but a strategic endeavor that is paying off in a big way."

"The devoted teachers and administrators in this district are delivering an undeniable benefit to their students' opportunity. When coupled with a student's hard work, such opportunities can have myriad outcomes, whether building confidence, learning to craft effective arguments, earning credit for college or persisting to graduate from college on time," said Trevor Packer, College Board senior vice president of AP and Instruction."

The College Board examined three years of AP data, from 2012 to 2014, looking across 34 AP exams, including world languages and culture. To be included on the AP District Honor Roll, Cabrillo Unified School District had to meet the following criteria: increase participation/access to AP by at least 4 percent in large districts, at least 6 percent in medium districts, and at least 11 percent in small districts; increase or maintain the percentage of exams taken by African Americans, Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native students; improve performance levels when comparing the percentage of students in 2014 scoring 3 or higher to those in 2012, unless the district has already attained a performance level at which more than 70 percent of its AP students are scoring 3 or higher.

The complete fifth annual AP District Honor Roll can be found on the College Board website.