Newsletter, February 2026
After celebrating key shifts in how Ravenswood approached literacy instruction last year—leading to a 44% literacy increase in grades TK-2—we are thrilled to see promising movement in all of our districts.
- With over 3,000 local leaders engaged in four months, and more students and families participating than ever before, momentum is growing in SMFCSD.
- Last year, we helped SSFUSD adopt a better math curriculum. This year, we’re supporting its implementation and seeing strong uptake.
- In Ravenswood, we had double the attendance we expected when 90 local leaders came to our first Community Stepback—a chance to celebrate progress and stay accountable.
The Power of Courageous Leadership
District Leadership Puts Instruction First
This fall, the Bay Ed Fund supported South San Francisco to post, source, and fill six critical positions with exceptional leaders from a national pool.
Now SSFUSD’s new Assistant Superintendent of Teaching & Learning and a Cambiar Catalyst Fellow, Dr. Campbell is putting research into action—including weekly classroom observations that build understanding of excellent teaching.
This month, with our support, she is launching a new pilot: short, focused cycles of improvement that target high-impact strategies, reflect on results, and adapt using data.
Beginning in four schools with clear math and literacy goals, the work builds proof points at the school level while strengthening district conditions needed to scale impact across all schools.
Principal Excellence Driving School-Based Change
我们知道 great school principals are one of the primary drivers of change, yet too often, school districts do not effectively define the principal’s responsibility as leading instructional improvement. We recently supported Ravenswood to build a shared bar and understanding of excellence for their principals – with instruction at its center.
This profile of excellence is currently being integrated into evaluation practices for principals, and will inform hiring for their open principal position at Cesar Chavez Middle School.
Communities are Holding Themselves Accountable to Student Success
Students succeed when a whole community rallies behind them. And our communities have been showing up.
Ravenswood Community Takes a Hard Look
In Ravenswood, 90 parents, educators, district leaders, and community partners came to our Community Stepback. They shared the successes of the last few years: a decrease in chronic absenteeism and significant gains in literacy. One parent shared how her daughter, supported by her teacher and additional tutoring from EPATT, made two years of academic progress in one year!
And the group took an honest look at how much more there is to do. Together, they strategized about how to meet the goals they set in their vision.
This is what we are building: Communities that believe they are in it together, all responsible and accountable for their students’ success.
Engaging SMFC Students in Reimagining School
In San Mateo-Foster City, we’ve engaged over 3000 students, families, and educators in the first four months of our partnership. As part of that engagement, We brought 40 students to visit a model school and solicited their input through essays, videos and art to imagine what they want for their schools. Nearly 200 students are on the waitlist for the next school visit—and the adults are listening hard.
“This school feels safe, but it still pushes you. You’re expected to try and do your best. That’s the kind of school I imagine—One where students can really succeed.”
-SMFC Student
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The Bay Ed Fund is an innovative approach to education philanthropy. We work with communities to co-design bold visions for student success, providing long-term funding, capacity-building, and expert support to drive transformative and sustainable improvements in public school districts.