KRF’s education mission is to ensure that all Oakland’s students are reading at or above grade-level by the end of third grade; we hold strongly that all of Oakland’s children can meet or exceed age-appropriate literacy standards with the help of collaborative community partnerships and focused efforts.

One demonstration of this belief manifests in our partnership with the Rogers Family Foundation and many others on the collective impact initiative, Oakland Reads 2020. Oakland Reads 2020 is aligned with the national campaign for grade level reading and will afford KRF many opportunities to collaboratively support literacy with actions ranging from collective funding of impactful programs year-round to providing resources for families, teachers and community advocates.

KRF focuses on at-risk children in Oakland, California. While many of our grants go to organizations that work in Oakland and other neighborhoods in the Bay Area, KRF grants are intended primarily for projects, and organizations that impact Oakland students. Our specific funding areas are early childhood education and literacy support.

Giving Guidelines for KRF Education Program Awards:

Eligibility

The Foundation supports organizations that:

• Serve children from at-risk communities (primarily ages 0-8) in Oakland, California
• Have nonprofit status
• Have a research-based approach to improving literacy or reading/writing readiness
• Have a clearly outlined plan to achieve goals and objectives
• Have evaluation tools in place to measure and document progress

Priorities

• Innovative school readiness and preschool programs
• Collaborative (two or more service providers) school readiness and preschool programs and initiatives
• Collaborative initiatives aimed at helping students read at or above grade-level by the end of third grade (ex: involving parents, educators and related wrap-around services)
• Projects aimed at providing professional development and resources for early childhood learning and literacy
• Capacity building that enables preschool and literacy providers to broaden their reach and services (can include capacity building for summer learning opportunities)

All prospective grantees must be able to demonstrate they are having measurable impact on literacy development and creating meaningful, transformative change for the children and families they serve.

Process for Education Program Awards:

The Foundation will consider proposals by invitation only from public non-profit institutions or government institutions whose focus areas are aligned with our giving. Invitations are extended in late January with awards announced in May. Program proposals will be reviewed by our staff and the Board of Directors.

Visit our Resources page for volunteer opportunities to help empower Oakland children through literacy.