When the pandemic first shut down BVSD schools back in March of 2020, we knew school closures would present a significant hardship for students, especially for those who rely on schools for more than just their education. We responded swiftly, providing an array of immediate support for students and families. However, we also knew the disruption to student learning would be disproportionate and could have a profound impact on the long-term success of students, especially those who are economically disadvantaged. 

As we all now know, the pandemic was not a short-lived interference in our lives; we are now in the third year of interrupted learning for students in our community. Now that we’re a few months into the 2021-22 school year and students are mostly back in person, our focus shifted from providing emergency relief to addressing the potential gaps in student learning.

Making up ground

We are committed to ensuring all students can learn and that those who’ve fallen behind can make up ground this year. We are also committed to helping students learn coping skills and build the resilience challenged by long periods of social isolation. 

In partnership with BVSD, we are funding a variety of school and student needs across the District. Because the needs vary widely, so do our investments. One of the tools we are using to fund these situations facing students and schools this year is our Academic Opportunity Fund. Both educators and school administrators can apply for funding to support students, classes, or schools.

A successful first round of funding 

The first funding round for the 2021-22 Academic Opportunity Fund closed in early October with over 30 applications submitted that were then reviewed by a team of community volunteers. We are proud to announce that we are able to meet the needs of 24 applicants: four applicants were connected to other district resources to meet their needs and 20 applicants received funding directly from Impact on Education.

Funding requests came from across the district, from mountain schools like Gold Hill to Broomfield schools, with over $30,000 awarded just in this first round. Requests ranged from technology licenses to classroom curriculum and supplies to health needs to musical instruments. Student populations being served by this funding span K-12 grade levels with students in ILC classrooms, AP classrooms, and elective classrooms all being impacted by these fulfilled requests.

The Academic Opportunity Fund is currently open for its second round of funding with a third round planned this fall as well. We anticipate we’ll continue to meet the varied needs of schools, relying on dedicated community volunteers to read and evaluate the grant requests we receive. 

While the Academic Opportunity Fund addresses immediate student needs beyond what BVSD is able to provide, our other program dollars continue to support large-scale district initiatives.

District-wide investments

In addition to the funding we disperse with our Academic Opportunity Fund, several large-scale district-wide issues have come to light as well this academic year. We are working with our partners at BVSD to address some of these needs, including mental health, transportation, supplemental instructional time, early childhood education, and career readiness. 

Throughout the pandemic, we learned that one of Impact on Education’s greatest strengths is   our ability to adapt to the changing and evolving needs of students. While we feel confident that our investments this academic year are vital to the success of all students, we are also prepared to pivot and change as the landscape shifts. 

Over the summer, we supported K-12 students in the Boulder Valley School District who needed to catch up on unfinished learning. Our investments supported elementary and middle school students whose skill levels in core classes had fallen below grade level as well as high school students who needed credit recovery.

Elementary and middle school students

We invested $75,000 in summer learning by extending the school day and offering free after school care to support students who would otherwise be unable to attend:

• 1264 students attended a half-day of summer learning four days per week for six weeks
• 161 BVSD students enrolled in free after school care across four sites
• Students received meals, snacks and supply materials for activities for each day of care

High school students

We funded free credit recovery that reached every BVSD high school. A total of 1272 students enrolled in BVSD Online over the summer:

• 48 middle school students and 1224 high school students took online courses
• 560 high school students enrolled in BVSD Online only for credit recovery
• 52 high school students enrolled only for full semester credit recovery
• Students taking math, science, and world language courses saw the highest success rates

Looking ahead

We are committed to ensuring the disruptions to learning caused by the COVID-19 pandemic don’t result in long-term learning gaps for our students. Impact on Education remains focused on supplemental learning opportunities and initiatives that contribute to student success. We will continue to invest throughout this 21-22 school year and beyond in targeted ways that support the students who are making up ground and ensuring that we provide additional instruction to those who need it most. 

We are excited to announce a new funding source, the Academic Opportunity Fund, to support students and educators in the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) during the 2021-22 school year.

Building on previous successes

During the 2020-21 school year we piloted the Student Academic Support Fund to meet individual student needs on a case by case basis. This pilot catalyzed our movement to support BVSD throughout the pandemic and provided over $25,000 to fund 20 separate grant requests. To expand this successful program to encompass educators looking to innovate within their classrooms and fulfill student needs, we consolidated the Student Academic Support Fund with our longstanding Classroom Innovation Grant funding program. 

Consolidating the Student Academic Support Fund and Classroom Innovation Grants into a single funding source for the 2021-22 school year allows us to meet both student and educator needs on a case-by-case basis.

“As the pandemic continues to disrupt education, we continue to assess the needs of our students and educators. The Academic Opportunity Fund allows Impact on Education to address immediate needs for academic support that supplement district initiatives.”

Allison Billings – Executive Director, Impact on Education

While other program dollars continue to support large-scale district initiatives including assisting with supplemental instruction across grade levels in math and reading, we know we know students sometimes face immediate needs for academic support beyond what BVSD is able to provide.

Needs we anticipate funding

The Academic Opportunity Fund is highly flexible and may support targeted tutoring, software licenses, transportation expenses, class fees, educator curriculum, materials for classroom use or other needs that stretch beyond what BVSD is able to provide.

“From my own classroom teaching experience, I’ve seen how even the most effective district initiative cannot possibly impact every single student. I value how this Fund singles out and meets unique individual and small groups of students’ academic needs.”

Jen Biegen – Program Coordinator, Impact on Education

The application form asks applicants to make sure their need is aligned with the most appropriate resource, whether it be Impact on Education or another BVSD or community organization.

How to request funding

The first application round is open now and will close on October 3. We anticipate opening subsequent rounds this fall and encourage those looking for funding to keep an eye on our website.

I first became involved with Impact on Education in 2012 when my Uncle Blake asked my family if we would be interested in sorting school supplies into backpacks for Crayons to Calculators. During my high school career I stayed involved with Crayons to Calculators and pursued a variety of other volunteer opportunities and extracurricular activities that led me to the University of Denver where I have been studying Psychology and Sociology for the past several years. 

My next opportunity to become involved with Impact on Education was as a third year college student, sitting in my parents basement at the start of a global pandemic. I learned about their volunteer events and fundraising committee and after attending initial meetings I had no doubt that I wanted to be more involved with the organization.

The importance of the right team

When I applied for an Impact on Education internship, I expected to have similar experiences as my peers: they learned a lot at their respective internships but they were not valued as team members or colleagues. After starting my communications internship in January 2020, I quickly realized this would not be the case.

My input was not just tolerated but requested and valued. This was one of my biggest takeaways from the internship: how effective and productive an organization and team can be under the right leadership and supportive, constructive environment. 

I’m incredibly grateful for these experiences which, above all, taught me that my drive and goal in life is to utilize and reallocate resources towards populations, communities, and individuals who most need them.

Kate Snedeker

While my expectations about the internship were accurate, it was significantly more challenging than I had expected. The team and I quickly learned which areas I excelled and which areas I struggled more, such as social media and communications. The team was responsive and receptive, so I began working more with our Development Director, Darcy.

What I learned working at Impact on Education

I switched my focus to the Impact Awards where I got to truly stretch my wings. I was responsible for coordinating the partnerships with the local businesses who graciously partnered with Impact on Education in order to thank our education community. This particular experience taught me how well I do in the community, engaging with this type of outreach.

We decided to extend my spring internship through the summer so I could help with the annual gala, Together We Climb. As my work transitioned to the gala I had an opportunity to stretch my community outreach wings again in an effort to prepare for our silent auction. This gave me the chance to be creative in considering the items our community may like to bid on in the auction while working with other companies and businesses to procure them. True to Darcy’s sage advice, it really never did hurt to ask. 

Aside from the community outreach, I was able to work with our Communications Director, Catherine to get better and more familiar with the programs involved with communications and social media. I feel so much more confident in both working with the programs Cat taught me and wading through work challenges that may not come so easily to me.

What’s next for me

I’m incredibly grateful for these experiences which, above all, taught me that my drive and goal in life is to utilize and reallocate resources towards populations, communities, and individuals who most need them. I am looking forward to graduating from the University of Denver this November and turning towards a career as a social worker. 

This year’s Summer Shuffle program looked unlike any other year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but the goal remained the same: preparing local preschoolers from low-income families for Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) classrooms. We’re so grateful we were able to have students learn in person by limiting our class sizes and following the BVSD health and safety protocols.

How the Summer Shuffle program works

Three Boulder Housing Partner (BHP) sites were selected to host a summer class, and each was staffed by a bilingual lead instructor and a bilingual paraeducator who delivered literacy, numeracy, and executive functioning instruction to BHP pre-schoolers and incoming kindergarten students. 

For five weeks, the classes met for two hours each Monday through Thursday, serving 31 children total from three to six years of age. In addition to the curriculum, kids were able to play outside and receive a take-home snack each day. New to the program this year, students were provided with their own copy of a new book each week based on the weekly curriculum theme as well as arts and crafts materials and supplies the families could keep for future use. 

What we learned this year

• Class attendance averaged 60% across the three sites with parents and caregivers attributing absences to inconsistent work schedules or transportation issues  
• 70% of the children made at least one point of growth on the BVSD TS-Gold Kindergarten Readiness Assessment*
• 82% of the students in the program could write their names on their own at the conclusion of the program
• 80% of the participants will continuing preschool enrollment or enrolling their child in preschool or kindergarten for the first time during the school year 2021-2022

What’s next for kindergarten readiness

We are working on plans for an expanded summer program in 2022 that will broaden our reach to more pre-K kids and to more communities. If you would like to help prepare our youngest learners for school, please reach out to Darcy to learn more or make a gift.

*The BVSD TS-Gold Kindergarten Readiness Assessment measures literacy/letter recognition, numeracy/number recognition and counting, and executive functioning skills necessary to engage productively and positively in a kindergarten class.

Our local K-12 students returned to classrooms last week, and preschoolers start on Monday, August 30. Everyone can feel the excitement, the anticipation, and the pure joy of being back at school.

On Friday, August 20th, hundreds of Boulder Valley community members came together (in person and virtually) to help Impact on Education ensure that all of these students have a great school year. We’re incredibly grateful for the sponsors and donors who joined and supported us.

Together, we raised nearly $250,000 to strengthen Boulder Valley’s public schools.

Impact on Education has big plans ahead, including a major investment to provide supplemental instruction for students to make up for unfinished learning from prior years and initiatives to ensure more students are prepared for college and careers.

At the gala we were touched to hear stories about students whose lives were positively and directly impacted by our work. And our keynote speaker, Erik Weihenmayer, took our theme, Together We Climb, to new heights. As a former educator and world-renowned athlete and adventurer, he spoke about the importance of teams in classrooms and in life, and he inspired us all with his incredible story. Every student will encounter barriers throughout their life much like the challenges Erik faces living and adventuring without sight. Erik reinforced the importance of our work as alchemists to eliminate the barriers standing in the way of student success.

We take this message to heart and are starting the school year off committed to helping all students find their paths to success. We wish every student and educator a wonderful school year!

Students and educators are excited to return to classrooms this week, and we’re proud to help ensure every student is equipped for success.

Students across our community have come to rely on Crayons to Calculators to provide a positive start to their school year, and 2021 was no exception.

This year was one of the most critical for the Crayons to Calculators program as more families found themselves needing assistance due to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. For health and safety reasons, we ran a modified program again this year, collecting monetary donations to purchase backpacks and supply kits, instead of having items donated and assembled by volunteers. Our partners at BVSD and SVVSD handled the logistics and ensured that each of more than 100 schools received backpacks and supplies for every student in their building facing financial hardship. 

We exceeded our Community Challenge goal of raising $25,000 and together with our Title Sponsor Western Disposal we collectively raised $250,000 to purchase and distribute school supplies to the students who need them most. We’re so proud of this and your dedication to our community.

Thank you for helping us provide school supplies to over 11,000 students in two school districts. We couldn’t have done it without you!

To move through life both professionally and personally, you have to be a good people person.

Yancey Spruill, CEO DigitalOcean

What I Know Now: Yancey Spruill, CEO DigitalOcean

Student Advisory Board Member Noah had the opportunity to speak with Yancey Spruill, CEO of DigitalOcean, just before he graduated from high school. Yancey shared insights from his education and his professional journey from engineer to Wall Street to working in technology. Tune into our latest episode of What I Know Now to hear these highlights and more from Yancey’s interview: 

• using statistics for assessing risk in his day to day life
• the importance of always learning and growing
• the benefits flexibility brings to work and learning environments
• his perspective on issues of race and class

About Yancey Spruill
As Chief Executive Officer, Yancey drives the overall strategy for DigitalOcean leading the company through its next phase of profitable growth. He brings a wealth of technical, financial, and leadership experience and spent the last 15 years in senior executive roles at technology companies including SendGrid and DigitalGlobe. Yancey started his career working as a manufacturing engineer at Corning Incorporated and The Clorox Company. He also has extensive investment banking experience focused on mergers and acquisitions at JPMorgan, Lehman Brothers, and Thomas Weisel Partners. More about Yancey >>

About the Student Advisory Board
Our Student Advisory Board (SAB) is a collaborative leadership experience for Boulder Valley School District high school students. The SAB brings together 13 students enrolled in Boulder Valley’s high schools to share their perspectives in order to advise Impact on Education’s initiatives and guide our investments. More about the SAB >>

The partnership

In early 2021, we facilitated a $30,000 investment from the Arly Kruse Educational Foundation to fund targeted in-school and after school catch up tutoring for students at Alicia Sanchez Elementary School and Escuela Bilingüe Pioneer Elementary, both in Lafayette.

How the tutoring was structured

Each program selected the students using literacy and math assessment data and teacher recommendations as well as attendance data to ensure reliable and consistent participation. Because Alicia Sanchez enrolled fewer students than expected, only $21,375 was allocated this spring to provide targeted tutoring to 44 high needs elementary students to improve their academic skills and future success. The remaining funds will be used to implement a similar program in fall 2021. 

Escuela Pioneer Bilingüe Elementary began an 8-week tutoring program in March for 23 students in 3rd and in 4th grade. One BVSD educator worked with each grade level, using iStation to deliver literacy instruction and Dreambox to deliver math instruction.

Alicia Sanchez Elementary began an after-school tutoring program for 21 students in 2nd and in 3rd grade. The curriculum was delivered by A La Carte Learning Solutions, a virtual 35-lesson tutoring program, using a structured literacy curriculum delivered by a low (3:1) teacher-to-student ratio. Although the curriculum was designed to be delivered in person, it was delivered virtually with students logging on from school to connect in small groups with their tutor.

Tutoring results

Pioneer 3rd grade students met for two hours per week and focused on math instruction. Fourth graders also met two hours per week but divided their time between math and literacy instruction. Third grade math assessment scores increased over 30% on average, with all students gaining at least 17%. Fourth graders gained an average of 13% on their reading assessment and 17% on their math assessment.  

Alicia Sanchez Elementary School’s after school tutoring program data indicated that 85% of students showed growth. 58% of the students grew a grade level or more, with the balance growing between .5 and .9 grade levels in their reading.  

The plan for the fall

The Arly Kruse Education Foundation partnership with Impact on Education offered an opportunity to evaluate two different ways of delivering tutoring to students who need additional instruction. Although students showed growth using both models, the success of the Escuela Bilingue Pioneer model was more cost effective while demonstrating similar student outcomes as those of the Alicia Sanchez program.

As a result, Impact on Education is planning to expand upon the model from Pioneer to reach more elementary school students in the 21-22 school year. We are also exploring ways to provide this supplemental instruction during the school day to ensure that we can reach all students who need the additional support. Stay tuned for details!

What I Know Now: Maris Herold, Boulder Police Chief

I’m a big believer that opportunity structure is the number one reason we have crime and disorder.

Boulder Police Chief, Maris Herold

Sara and Jasper, two members of our Student Advisory Board, had the opportunity to speak with Chief Maris Herold of the Boulder Police Department back in May. Prior to her 2020 appointment as Boulder Police Department’s Chief of Police, she worked for the Cincinnati Police Department (CPD) for 23 years where she focused on innovative strategies to better her community and the department itself. Watch Chief Herold’s What I Know Now interview to hear more about the following highlights and more:

• How her early experiences as a social worker and psychology intake worker continue to influence her considerations for underserved populations as Police Chief 
• How her non-traditional career path from social worker to Police Chief has given her unique opportunities to understand and benefit the communities she has worked with 
• Why diverse representation and recruiting practices are critical for police departments to adopt and her own efforts in promoting diversity focused policies
• Her police reform goals for the next several decades 
• The policies Chief Herold adapted when she was first appointed in Boulder County to address police brutality and citizen accessibility in communicating with the department

About Maris Herold
First appointed as Boulder Police Chief in 2020, Chief Herold previously served as Chief at the University of Cincinnati Police Division (UCPD) and has 23 years of experience with the Cincinnati Police Department (CPD). She has an educational background in Sociology with a Bachelor’s degree from Eckerd College and a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH. Chief Herold has prioritized diversity-focused recruiting initiatives and officer access to enhanced technological platforms. She has been recognized for her crime reduction initiatives and was awarded the 2017 Herman Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem Oriented Policing for her work at CPD. Learn more >>

About the Student Advisory Board
Our Student Advisory Board (SAB) is a collaborative leadership experience for Boulder Valley School District high school students. The SAB brings together students enrolled in Boulder Valley’s 13 high schools to share their perspectives in order to advise Impact on Education’s initiatives and guide our investments. More about the SAB >>

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