Now More Than Ever - Invest in Oakland's Public Schools
September 1, 2009
Dear Supporter of Oakland Public Schools,
During our fundraising campaign last year, the Oakland Small Schools Foundation (OSSF) asked supporters to “invest in Oakland’s public schools – now more than ever.” As crucial as the need was then, we feel it is even more urgent today.
As you know, the reach of the economic downturn has been sweeping and severe. Locally, California’s budget woes have left Oakland’s public schools with their own challenges: Each of OSSF’s 40 network schools is facing deep cuts this year, and the outlook is even worse for 2010-11. What’s more, our schools are in predominantly low-income areas, meaning students’ families are rarely able to fill the financial gaps, and the schools must provide more support to families than ever. Given this, OSSF is resolved to redouble its efforts in not only securing resources for our schools, but in helping principals wisely manage money now and down the road.
When you support OSSF, you can have a real impact on our schools and their students.
There are several ways you can contribute:
1. When you donate directly to OSSF’s operations, your $1 turns into $5 for schools and is used to fund internships, after-school programs (see page 3 of our newsletter), and field trips. You can make a general donation online or by sending a check to "OSSF," P.O. Box 20238, Oakland, CA 94620. Consider a recurring gift -- just a dollar a day turns into nearly $2,000 for schools by year’s end. We leverage your dollars to raise more money for schools.
2. This fall, we’re debuting our “Field Trips for All” campaign, whose goal is to distribute donations for field trips across our network of schools. Due to budget cuts, schools have been forced to reduce field trips such as the ever-popular overnight science trip to the Marin Headlands. These excursions offer hands-on learning that connects to classroom curriculum in concrete ways, and for many students, field trips are their only opportunities to travel outside Oakland. Every kid deserves these experiences. To contribute to the cause, click here and be sure to type "Field Trips for All" in the Special Campaign Designation field. You can also donate by check, writing "Field Trips for All" on the Memo line.
3. If you own or work for a local business or corporation, OSSF’s “100:100 Club” is another way to get involved in your community and publicize your support of our schools. When your workplace donates $100 or more to OSSF, we turn that donation into resources for Oakland’s students.
Through our work with schools, Oakland’s “flatlands” students constantly remind us of their resilience. As recent Life Academy of Health and Bioscience graduate Julie Pham puts it in our newsletter, “I know I can persevere and do anything … If something pushes you down, you get back up.” Students like Julie inspire us to focus on our mission, that all students have the opportunity to achieve.
We hope you will consider supporting the more than 12,000 students in the OSSF network of schools. If you are new to us, there is no time like now to make a donation. We send a huge thanks to those who contributed to OSSF in the 2008-09 school year, especially in this uncertain economy, and we humbly ask you to renew your support. Again this year, we need your help now more than ever.
Sincerely,
Holly Babe Faust
Executive Director
Read our Summer 2009 newsletter here!