MANHATTAN BEACH EDUCATION REACHES
$2.6 MILLION ANNUAL APPEAL GOAL

Manhattan Beach, CA, February 4, 2008 – The Manhattan Beach Education Foundation (MBEF) has reached its Annual Appeal goal of $2.6 million. The fundraising campaign, which officially ended January 31, will support a year’s worth of educational programs in 2008-2009. MBEF grants made to the Manhattan Beach Unified School District pay for teacher’s salaries and programs K-12 that are not covered by state or federal funds.

“We thank the parents who generously support their children’s education through MBEF. The success of this five-month campaign is the result of parents’ support and thousands of hours of effort by many volunteers. It is teamwork and dedication at its best,” says MBEF Vice President and Annual Appeal Chair, Erika White. “Broad-based participation was our primary objective. At four of our schools more than seventy percent of families gave to MBEF, and one school achieved almost one hundred percent participation. Overall, the number of people giving to the Annual Appeal continues to grow each year. Strong schools are an essential ingredient to a successful community and we are all reaping the benefits of MBEF’s work on our seven campuses. I extend my thanks and gratitude to all the participants of this year’s campaign.”

“Because of MBEF, and its broad-based support within our community, we are poised to keep the quality of education in Manhattan Beach high despite California’s projected budget shortfall,” says MBEF President, Ellen Rosenberg. “MBEF helps maintain stability and continuity in the face of a complex and unpredictable public education funding system. In light of upcoming budget cuts and a projected drop in state funding for the next couple of years, we would like to remind the community that our fundraising efforts also include building an endowment which will someday provide an ongoing source of funding that will make us even less susceptible to cuts from Sacramento.”

Every student at the district’s seven schools benefits from MBEF. As Mira Costa High School teacher, Rocky Wilson, puts it, “I don’t see how we would be where we are without the Ed Foundation. The government supplies the skeleton of education, MBEF supplies the flesh.”

At each of the district’s five elementary schools, MBEF pays for a librarian, physical education teacher, technology specialist (computer lab teacher), health assistants (and a registered nurse who oversees the health assistants district wide), reading specialists, a teacher’s aide in each fourth and fifth grade classroom, and two instrumental music instructors who share their time amongst the five elementary schools. In addition, as part of its focus on science this year, MBEF also funds science specialists. MBEF also partially funds the Young at Art program at elementary and middle school. Elementary grants this year total $1.5 million.

At Manhattan Beach Middle School, MBEF pays for a portion of elective courses, a student advisor, the library media specialist (librarian), a musical assistant for the instrumental music program, a piano accompanist for the vocal music program, a health assistant, and Scholar Quiz (the popular, annual, fast-paced academic competition open to all students). MBEF has also funded new technology for middle school science classes this year. Grants to the middle school this year total $305,000.

At Mira Costa High School, MBEF pays for a number of elective courses, two full-time college and career counselors, the librarian, a technology director and specialist, and the substance abuse education and prevention program known as PACE. MBEF also funds the AVID program which prepares student in the academic middle for four-year college eligibility. New grants this year include funding for a science lab assistant and for the refurbishment of the school’s green house. High school grants this year total more than $700,000.

In addition to grants serving the individual school sites, MBEF is funding a “science coordinator” who is assessing science curriculum and facilities across the district and providing direction to the district for improving science education.

According to the California Department of Education, MBUSD currently ranks fifth in API scores among the state’s best-performing unified school districts. Yet it is the only district among this select group that does not also receive funding from locally imposed taxes, like parcel or utility taxes to supplement state funding. Each of the top performing districts also has an education foundation. The district’s funding from the state is only $6,000 a year per student, while the national average is $8,618, according to the National Education Association. The best-funded states in the nation spend more than $10,000 a year per student.

MBUSD schools receive funding from MBEF in the form of grants made directly to the school district for programs specifically agreed upon by MBEF and the district. Last year’s Annual Appeal raised an unprecedented $2.5 million, which amounts to approximately five percent of the district’s budget for 2007-2008. All of the money raised through this campaign goes directly back to the schools

MBEF was founded in 1983 by concerned parents and community leaders of the South Bay and its role has evolved from providing limited educational enhancements, at a cost of tens of thousands of dollars, to funding critical educational programs at a cost of more than $2.5 million annually. MBEF’s board of directors consists of parents, community members, local business representatives, and PTA Presidents from each of the district’s seven schools.

For more information, please contact Susan Warshaw, Executive Director, MBEF, 310-303-3342 or visit www.mbef.org.

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