Education Foundation Highlights Accomplishments

The nonprofit San Leandro Education Foundation (SLED) held a public meeting Wednesday evening during which members reported on the organization's recent accomplishments and presented the San Leandro Unified School District with a check for $47,000.

The money, SLED President Deborah Cox said, will go to Bancroft and John Muir middle schools for cyber-bullying prevention efforts. Wilson Elementary School, the district's largest elementary school, will get support for Playworks, an Americorps-backed program focused on healthy recess activities and student leadership development.

The organization secured the funding through $24,500 in grants from the Kaiser Permanente Community Benefit Program, $22,000 from the San Leandro-based technology company OSIsoft and $500 from 1st United Services Credit Union, which will also participate in an upcoming promotion to donate $25 to SLED for each new account opened.
 
These were among the fundraising efforts that Cox reviewed as she looked back at SLED's activity in the last year. In November, the nonprofit went through Americorps*VISTA to hire a volunteer program coordinator, Tessa Atkinson-Adams, who has written grant proposals that resulted in $27,000 in funding.

Atkinson-Adams also helped expand Eat Out for Education, an initiative that has raised $2,346 and includes 17 restaurants which donate a portion of sales each Wednesday to customers presenting SLED coupons; the Buck-a-Month club, which has raised $9,438 from 135 members, and the implementation of Donors Choose, an independent website which crowdsources the community to help pay for needed items in individual classrooms. So far it has brought $17,000 worth of goods and materials to San Leandro schools.

Looking ahead, Cox said SLED will hire a new Americorps*VISTA staffer this fall to replace Atkinson-Adams when her service contract is up (her work was "priceless," Cox said) and she hopes to expand the nonprofit's fundraising programs to include the SLED 100, a group of 100 individuals or organizations who pledge to donate $1,000 per year for three years to SLED.

In addition to its focus on building relationships with local businesses, Cox said SLED is working with Supervisor Wilma Chan on an adopt-a-school program and welcomes additional volunteers, interns, board members and advisory board members.

"The bottom line is we need you," Cox said. "There's lots of ways you can participate."

Cox said SLED, which was founded in 2008, is different from other foundations such as the San Leandro Scholarship Foundation, San Leandro Sports Foundation and Keep Music Rockin' Foundation in that its efforts seek to benefit every child in the district from kindergarten through the 12th grade, across individual schools.

The organization got its start when Cox got together with friends and decided individuals needed to band together to help provide resources for local schools outside of the often political atmosphere of school parcel taxes and bonds.

Wednesday's meeting was held at San Leandro High School's new Arts Education Center, where SLED has funded a theater director using money raised through its spinoff group Friends of the Theater, run by SLED volunteer Jeni Engler.

Engler was one of several 2010-11 volunteers honored at the event. Others included Bal Theatre owner Dan Dillman, Kelsey Williams of Drake's Brewery, design consultant Madeleine Budnick and the school district's communications specialist Robin Michel.

Those who wish to get involved are encouraged to visit SLED's  website at www.sledfund.org.