In January 2020, ten new recipients of EdVestors’ School Solutions Seed Fund grants launched a diverse set of approaches that tackle core issues in urban education. In applying, each school identified its top challenge – the one standing between where they were at the time and where they wanted to be – and designed a solution that would clear the way to success for their students. Through the School Solutions Seed Fund, EdVestors makes grants of $5,000 to 10,000, and the educators leading these initiatives learn from their own implementation and from each other throughout the spring.
Community and Career Connected Learning
Digital Ready & Excel High School (South Boston)
- Providing students access to careers in Boston’s tech industry and the opportunity to earn credentials through digital badges developed in partnership with business leaders
Greater Egleston High School, Boston Day and Evening Academy, & EDCO Youth Alternative (Roxbury/Back Bay)
- Creating a network of schools exploring the Big Picture Learning model to engage nontraditional high school students in personalized, hands-on education both inside and outside of the classroom
KeySteps & Charlestown High School (Charlestown)
- Engaging high school students in the issue of youth homelessness through project-based learning
Culturally Relevant Teaching
Boston Public Schools Office of Student, Family, and Community Advancement (City-wide)
- Amplifying student voice and increasing teacher’s cultural proficiency through “Youth Empowered Learning” workshops delivered by student-teacher teams across 5 of Boston’s high schools
Charles Sumner Elementary School (Roslindale)
- Creating a culture of literacy through revitalized classroom libraries, guided reading groups with culturally relevant texts, teacher training, and a community celebration of literacy
Codman Academy Charter Public School, King K-8 School, & St. John Paul II Catholic Academy (Dorchester)
- Supporting boys of color in achieving academic excellence through cross-sector collaborative teacher-led professional development focused on academic rigor in culturally relevant teaching
Family Engagement
William E. Carter School (South End)
- Equipping students with significant disabilities and their families to adopt technology-driven communication systems at home and advocate for their needs in preparation for life after graduation
St. Stephen’s Youth Programs (South End)
- Building family engagement through a Parent Mentor Program that brings parents into the classroom to support learning and develops parents to be leaders in their communities
Focus on All Learners
Patrick J. Kennedy School (East Boston)
- Providing professional development opportunities for teacher leaders to pilot a new, inclusive co-teaching classroom model for English Language Learners
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. K-8 School (Dorchester)
- Preparing students with special needs and their typically developing peers for inclusion classrooms through play and learning opportunities that are accessible for all students