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$20 Million by 2020 Campaign

By June 13, 2017August 8th, 2018eNews

MBEF recently kicked off a campaign to grow its Endowment to $20 million by the year 2020. Much of the success of our schools depends on the tremendous support from our community. Each year MBEF grants over $6M for educational programs throughout our District, most of which comes from annual donations from parents. When we look to the future of our schools, increasing the MBEF Endowment has significant advantages; it creates an ongoing source of income, relieves fundraising pressure on the Annual Appeal and upholds our donors’ values and priorities.

To demonstrate the commitment to grow the Endowment, MBEF’s Board of Directors voted to allocate all funds raised at the 2017 Wine Auction to the Endowment at their May 2nd meeting. During the Fund-a-Need portion of the Live Auction, Endowment President Mike Duckworth explained, “It took us 27 years to build the Endowment to $10M, the point at which we made our first disbursement. In the last four years, the Endowment has grown from $10M to $15M, and distributed almost $1M to our schools. Now we are experiencing the power of the Endowment. It is our responsibility as a community to carry on the vision started 30 years ago”.

Wine Auction guests agreed and raised their paddles to donate over $800,000 toward the effort. Gifts ranged from $50 to $100,000, and came from a cross-section of parents, community members, MBUSD Board members, City Council representatives, and 100% of MBEF’s 35-member Board of Directors. The incredible show of support reflects how passionate the Manhattan Beach community is about the schools, and the impact MBEF has on the caliber of teaching and learning in the district.

With the proceeds from the Wine Auction, the Endowment stands closer to $20M than ever before. This is a tremendous milestone for our schools, and the health of our community as a whole, but there is work to be done to fulfill our vision of sustainable funding. State funding for education continues to fluctuate, and school districts throughout the state are projecting deficits in one to three years due to the state’s decision to transfer pension costs to schools.

To learn more about the $20 Million by 2020 campaign and school funding in general, please see this recent article in Southbay Magazine. For more information on how you can participate in the $20M by 2020 campaign, please call the MBEF office at 310-303-3342.

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