SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 12, 2017 /PRNewswire/
-- Salesforce.org, the philanthropic arm of Salesforce (NYSE:
CRM), announced today it will donate $12.2
million to San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and
Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) to expand computer science
education in Bay Area public schools. This marks the fifth
consecutive year of Salesforce.org's partnership with SFUSD and the
second year of partnership with OUSD, bringing Salesforce.org's
total investment in the districts to $34.7
million.
Salesforce.org will donate $7
million to SFUSD to continue to expand and improve STEM
education and $5.2 million to OUSD,
focusing on computer science, teacher training and breaking down
the barriers to learning. The donation includes $100,000 of unrestricted funds to 34 schools in
San Francisco and Oakland through the Principal's Innovation
Fund, which allows these principals to direct resources toward
priorities and initiatives of their choosing. Additionally,
Salesforce employees have committed 40,000 volunteer hours to
education across the country over the 2017–2018 school year,
doubling the previous school year commitment.
Comments on the news:
"Salesforce.org understands that
an investment in our youth is an investment in the future of
San Francisco," said San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee. "Support for STEM programs is
changing the way that the students of San
Francisco's public schools are learning, helping them
prepare for tomorrow's shifting trends. We are fortunate to live in
a thriving city, and we want to see everyone — especially our young
students — benefit from that prosperity. Salesforce.org's ongoing
commitment to our STEM programs helps us achieve that
goal."
"I am thrilled to continue our partnership with Salesforce.org
to provide more opportunities for Oakland Unified School District
students," said Oakland Mayor
Libby Schaaf. "Due to their
incredible generosity last year, we have already seen tremendous
impact, dramatically increasing access to computer science classes,
personalized math instruction, and college and career support
through Oakland Promise Future Centers. We know that our students
deserve the best opportunities to be prepared for the ever-evolving
workforce and this investment helps ensure our students are able to
thrive in post-secondary education and the career of their
dreams."
"In the short time OUSD has partnered with Salesforce.org, we
have seen a dramatic difference in the outlook of our students,"
said OUSD Superintendent Kyla
Johnson-Trammell. "Everything from the middle school
Principal's Innovation Fund to an enhanced focus on computer
science to the volunteers in our classrooms has enabled our young
people to see their futures through a new lens. The life path that
some of them are taking may have already shifted because of this
important work. We thank Salesforce.org for helping give our
students this vision."
"Our partnership with Mr. Benioff and Mayor Lee has brought many
great life changing opportunities and outcomes for our students.
Middle schools have been our priority with this initiative and
academic achievement is on the rise in the middle grades," said
SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Vincent
Matthews. "In addition to enabling improved teaching and
learning for all our students, this partnership is bringing access
to young people who have historically been underrepresented in STEM
fields. It's a game changer."
"We want to live in a city, and in a country, where every child
has access to education that will prepare them for the jobs of
tomorrow," said Rob Acker, CEO of
Salesforce.org. "I'm inspired by the progress we've made with SFUSD
and OUSD and look forward to strengthening our partnership to give
Bay Area students access to STEM education to make a positive
impact on future generations."
Closing the Opportunity Gap for San Francisco
Students
Building on Salesforce.org's multiyear partnership
with SFUSD and Mayor Lee, the $7
million SFUSD funding will be used to:
- Continue to increase computer science enrollment in middle
schools and high schools, and expand the program to 21 elementary
schools
- Continue to provide math coaches to improve teaching efficacy
and student outcomes
- Double down on teacher training through a new partnership with
NYU designed to drive teacher support
and retention
- Pilot a new instructional model in partnership with New Tech
Network that offers personalized learning across all content
areas
- Deliver $100,000 per school of
unrestricted funds to all 21 middle schools through the Principal's
Innovation Fund
Furthering Growth and Support for Oakland Unified School
District
Through Salesforce.org's continuing partnership
with OUSD and Mayor Schaaf, the $5.2
million in funding will be used to:
- Expand computer science education to additional schools and
increase professional development opportunities for computer
science teachers
- Provide social worker, academic, and career development support
to newcomer students
- Provide math coaches and intervention programs to help
strengthen teaching and accelerate student achievement
- Increase one-on-one tutoring support and classroom services
through the Oakland School Volunteers program
- Expand Principal's Innovation Fund of $100,000 per school to 13 middle schools
Improving Computer Science Education
Since
Salesforce.org formed its partnership with SFUSD five years ago,
San Francisco has become the very
first school district in the United
States to have a computer science curriculum for every
grade. Enrollment of girls in computer science has increased from
nearly 200 to more than 3,800, and enrollment of underrepresented
groups in computer science has increased from less than 100 to more
than 3,800. Today, computer science enrollment mirrors the SFUSD
community demographic with females and underrepresented groups each
making up nearly half of overall enrollment.
Since Salesforce.org formed its partnership with OUSD in 2016,
the number of teachers teaching computer science in middle school
has increased from two to 14. Middle school enrollment in computer
science courses grew from 80 to over 900 students. Of these 900
students taking their first computer science class, 45 percent are
young women, 29 percent are African-American and 38 percent are
Latino, mirroring the demographics of OUSD.
About Salesforce.org
Salesforce.org is based on a simple idea:
leverage Salesforce’s technology, people and resources to improve
communities around the world. We call this integrated philanthropic
approach the 1-1-1 model. Since 1999, Salesforce technology has
powered more than 32,000 nonprofit and education institutions;
Salesforce and its philanthropic entities have provided more than
$168 million in grants; and
Salesforce employees have logged more than 2.3 million volunteer
hours throughout the world. For more information on Salesforce.org,
please visit
www.salesforce.org.
Salesforce, Salesforce Sales Cloud, Salesforce Community
Cloud, Salesforce.org, and others are among the trademarks
of salesforce.com, inc. Other names and brands may be claimed as the
property of others.
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