Support Oakland's Public Schools!
December 8, 2008
Dear Public School Supporter,
By supporting the Oakland Small Schools Foundation this year you can have a real impact on the lives of 12,000 kids in 40 of Oakland’s most under-served public schools.
These are hard economic times, and we know you will be asked often this holiday season to contribute to worthy organizations. What’s different about giving to OSSF is that for every dollar the community invests, we raise five dollars for schools.
OSSF raised over $800K from foundations and individuals for school programs last year, and we’re on track for more than $1 million this year. Over the last three years we have demonstrated that OSSF is instrumental in the schools’ successes.
Your contribution provides critically important programs for students. The veggie gardens and salad bars we have funded enable our kids to learn about botany and nutrition. The after-school programs funded through OSSF provide thousands of kids with extra academic support, and recreation and enrichment activities they would not otherwise have. Last year 2,000 kids went on educational field trips through OSSF funding -- many of these students have never traveled out of their neighborhoods. This is just a shortlist of the things we are accomplishing (see our newsletter for more) with the support of individuals like you.
And, we not only get resources for schools -- we help build the capacity of our schools to run like smart businesses so all our kids have the opportunity for an excellent education. OSSF’s expert staff coaches schools on using their money and other resources efficiently, helps schools market themselves to families and the funding community, and develops vital partnerships for them.
There are many forces threatening our public schools: the Governor is proposing more cuts for education (including mid-term cuts), the economy is tenuous, and No Child Left Behind mandates academic goals that are virtually unattainable without extra resources.
Won’t you be a part of the solution to ensure that all of our kids -- regardless of their family backgrounds and the neighborhoods where they live -- get a great education?
We need your financial support. If you have given, we so appreciate that, and we urge you to give again. If you have not yet made a contribution, please take a minute to think about what happens to kids who can’t read or do math at their grade level and who won’t finish high school -- and consider giving to OSSF this year. Send your tax-deductible contribution today through our online donation page.
Thank you so much and Happy Holidays from all of us at OSSF.
Holly Babe Faust
Executive Director
Click here for a printable version of this letter.