The early years of a child’s education make an enormous difference in their life-long success. The Kenneth Rainin Foundation seeks to transform early childhood learning in Oakland so that all students can succeed regardless of their race, level of income or neighborhood. The stark disparities revealed by the ongoing pandemic and movement for racial justice reaffirmed our commitment to advancing educational equity. Children and their families continue to be at the heart of our work.

The return to in-school learning delighted and challenged young students and their dedicated educators. Families and school communities faced ongoing equity concerns about safety protocols and vaccine disparities. Oakland’s caring teachers and tutors navigated students’ varied learning progress along with the pandemic’s effect on children’s mental health and wellbeing. Fewer afterschool supports disrupted the continuum of care that working parents and caregivers relied on for their children. Rainin Foundation grantees provided essential services and supports to meet these intersecting challenges and inequities.

Our 2021 grantmaking embraced four equity-focused strategies to improve outcomes for children from birth to eight years old. Our Community Strategy Council was instrumental in co-designing these strategies and elevating community solutions. They also played a key role in helping us shift toward participatory grantmaking, power-sharing and democratic decision-making. As we strengthened our practice of trust-based philanthropy, we also streamlined the application process and provided more multi-year grants to reduce administrative burdens for grantees.

Oakland has a strong network of community-based organizations that support early learning inside and outside of the classroom, and address family needs. A spectrum of grantee organizations prioritize asset-based and culturally affirming programs that contribute to a thriving ecosystem for learning.

In 2021, Mindful Life Project partnered with schools to provide mindfulness and wellness instruction. Lessons connected students, teachers and their families to their everyday experiences, using trauma-informed, culturally relevant methods to nurture social-emotional skills. Parent Voices Oakland is a Black-led grassroots organization that builds the political power of parents, families and caregivers. Their advocacy supported culturally competent, family-centered learning environments and increased access to early mental health interventions at social service organizations.

Another grantee, Partnership for Children & Youth, brought afterschool programs to public and affordable housing communities. Their HousED initiative built the capacity of housing leaders and staff to deliver high-quality education programs for children. And Tandem, Partners in Early Learning offered virtual early childhood literacy workshops and read-alouds for the community. In partnership with Alameda County Public Health Department’s Fatherhood Initiative, they adopted Father Friendly Principles into their direct service work to both empower fathers and better support their unique needs. These collaborations are surfacing innovative and promising solutions.

A growing body of research confirms important academic benefits when students of color have teachers that reflect their identity. Two of our grantees launched programs to increase diversity among educators. The Oakland Unified School District’s Office of Equity is addressing the shortage of male teachers of color through its Early Literacy Kings program. The program recruits and trains men of color between the ages of 18 and 24 to be highly skilled SEEDS of Learning tutors. SEEDS is a professional development and coaching model designed around data-driven, emotionally responsive and equity-promoting strategies to build social, emotional, language, and literacy skills in young children. As SEEDS tutors, the Kings work closely with students and gain hands-on experience leading one-on-one and small group instruction in classrooms. Their impact extends to language, culture and academic progress. The Kings also receive professional development, mentorship and other supports to pursue successful careers in education.

Our funding for the City of Oakland’s Deputy Mayor of Education helped advance efforts to develop Teachers Rooted in Oakland. This pilot initiative provides affordable housing subsidies to recruit and retain teachers of color in Oakland. Its creators are working on state legislation to increase student teachers’ pay and affordable housing options for all California educators.

Our grantmaking supported networks that promote a participatory culture of learning among school communities, caregivers, friends, families and neighbors. Fulcrum is shepherding several neighborhood-based initiatives to promote early literacy. Their “educating, disrupting and bridging” approach invests in data, advocacy and coalition building to undo systemic obstacles to literacy. Literacy, Leadership and Liberation Academy (3Ls Academy) equips Black and Latinx leadership teams to deliver instructional support to students. Their community learning centers create neighborhood hubs for teachers and parents to strengthen early childhood education.

FluentSeeds promotes early learning and literacy through the SEEDS of Learning framework. They continued to expand SEEDS of Learning in Oakland, giving teachers strategies and tools to address students’ varied learning progress. SEEDS teachers are eager to apply their growing expertise to shaping instruction in their classrooms.

Research released in 2021 shows that SEEDS of Learning produces statistically significant, positive changes for students and teachers after just one year. The Foundation engaged NORC at the University of Chicago to conduct research to understand the impact of this relationship-based professional development and coaching model. Using a randomized control trial, NORC divided 26 Kidango preschools into sites where teachers received SEEDS coaching support and sites where they did not. The study’s next phase will examine whether multiple years of SEEDS training and coaching continue to drive improvements in teacher knowledge and student early reading skills. This research is helping us better understand what is needed to create significant improvements in student literacy outcomes. SEEDS continued success is key to our goal of all Oakland children reading at or above grade level by third grade.

City-wide collaborative efforts supported the adults who care for and educate Oakland’s babies, toddlers and preschoolers in both formal and informal settings. The Oakland Literacy Coalition continued engaging its network of local organizations in championing effective practice and literacy for young learners.

Another grantee, Oakland Starting Smart and Strong, counts the Coalition among its many partners for the third annual Early Learning Symposium. This year’s virtual series, “Navigating the New Now: Building a Community of Support,” kicked off in November with a workshop on fostering social-emotional skills through books. This event aims to strengthen Oakland’s learning community of formal and informal childcare providers.

EDUCATION PROGRAM

At the heart of our approach are four equity-focused strategies that, when operating together in a learning ecosystem, can lead to improved outcomes for children. We are honored to partner with these organizations. Learn more about the 2021 Education Program grant recipients.

Teaching And Learning

Support For Families And Communities

Strategic Networks

RESPONSE FUND

This discretionary fund supports exceptional and emerging opportunities that will have an outsized impact and move us closer toward our vision of all Oakland children reading at or above grade level, no one suffering from Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Bay Area artists thriving.