DISTRICTWIDE PROJECTS
INNOVATIVE PROGRAMMING FOR EVERY CHILD, EVERY DAY
Austin Ed Fund invests in important initiatives that enhance Austin ISD’s ability to prepare every student with the knowledge and skills to thrive in college, career, and life.
Since 2001, the Austin Ed Fund has successfully served as a catalyst for more than $43 million to support Austin ISD strategic priorities and initiatives. We continue to build relationships with funding partners and develop programming and fundraising objectives aligned with Austin ISD’s strategic needs.
Multi-tiered Systems of Support
Philanthropic support has played a pivotal role in positioning Austin ISD as a nationally recognized leader in the growing movement to develop emotionally resilient children. With support from several funders, including the NoVo Foundation and the St. David’s Foundation, Austin ISD staff have engaged in a multi-year, human-centered design process to intentionally update the district’s multi-tiered system of social, emotional, behavioral, and mental health supports to better promote student wellbeing.
Social and Emotional Learning
Instruction built on social and emotional skills complements the districts’ diverse and enriching academic programs. With the leadership of the St. David’s Foundation, Buena Vista Foundation, Klein Foundation and Tapestry Foundation, Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is being taught across the district and has expanded to reach faculty, staff and families of Austin ISD students. Because of SEL, academic success is increasing, behavioral referrals are decreasing and school communities are becoming stronger and more engaged.
Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI)/ Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NME)
Austin ISD is on the cutting edge of the application of brain-based, trauma-informed approaches in the field of education, including TBRI and NME. These approaches acknowledge and help address the fact that students who are impacted by abuse, neglect, household dysfunction, incarcerated relatives, food insecurities, refugee horrors, homelessness and other factors, come to school each day unprepared to learn. Several campuses are piloting Bruce Perry’s Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics in Education, with support from the Buena Vista, Klein and Tapestry Foundations.
PALS
Grant and Margo Thomas and the Kabacoff Family Foundation generously support the Austin PALS (Peer Assistance Leadership & Service), a youth empowerment and cross-age peer mentoring program that has served thousands of Austin ISD students since it was founded in 1980. Training older students to be peer mentors to younger students at feeder schools, serving as their role models and mentors, the PALS program promotes an ethos of service, interpersonal skills and community-mindedness, which helps to create a more positive and productive school environment.
Caregiver Meals
In a year of incredible loss, the Austin Ed Fund and Austin ISD found a win-win with the Caregiver Meals program. Launched with the support of the City of Austin, the initiative has provided ongoing meals to families since May 2020. By the end of September 2021, they served over 1.65M million meals. By teaming up with local restaurants, the program also helped businesses stay afloat, employees keep jobs, and families feel supported.
Culinary Garden and Teaching Kitchen at Cunningham Elementary
The Emeril Lagasse Foundation awarded Cunningham Elementary School via the Austin Ed Fund a $500,000 grant in 2018 to implement the Emeril’s Culinary Garden & Teaching Kitchen program. Grant funds supported the construction of a teaching kitchen and cooking and gardening programming for Cunningham students in PK through 5th grade. The project is a collaboration with Cunningham’s nonprofit partner PEAS (Partners for Education, Agriculture and Sustainability).
Pre-K Expansion
Beginning in 2016, thanks to the Buena Vista Foundation, Cullen Family Charitable Foundation, KLE Foundation, LSG Charitable Foundation, Tapestry Foundation and the United Way of Greater Austin, Austin ISD expanded Pre-Kindergarten to serve three-year-olds (PK3). Our efforts to increase students’ readiness for school is strengthened by the support of our partners and the community.
Home Visiting Program
Over the last two years, thanks to support from the St. David’s Foundation, the Austin Ed Fund has supported a planning process resulting in the implementation of a home visiting pilot program serving up to 28 families of two- and three-year-olds who live in high-needs attendance zones. Using an existing, successful peer-to-peer model, Families as Partners, Parent Champions will conduct home visits that not only teach families and students invaluable early literacy skills, but also create a sense of community and belonging that sets both children and their families up for lifelong learning success
Industry Partnerships
With funding from the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation and Bank of America, the Austin Ed Fund has supported the district’s strategy to better connect coursework and student experiences with industry needs. District leaders have been assessing the needs of campuses, developing systems and infrastructure centrally that can support robust industry partnerships, and developing a more holistic approach to corporate engagement. This is all in service of providing more awareness, exposure and experiences to our students to prepare them for college, career and life.