Dive Brief:

• The philanthropic arm of cloud-computing firm Salesforce pledged $2.5 million to the Oakland Unified School District and $6 million to San Francisco public schools for use this school year.
• EdSource reports that, among other things, Oakland plans to use the money to hire math teachers and coaches who will be able to reduce middle school class sizes and improve academic achievement, ultimately contributing to an increase in the district’s graduation rate.
• In San Francisco the donation will give the district’s 21 middle school principals an extra $100,000 for their budgets, pay the salaries of 10 new math teachers and coaches, expand computer science instruction and buy technology for special education students.

Dive Insight:

School districts across the country have come to rely on local businesses and community organizations as partners. Public funding sources simply are not enough to meet the needs of public schools. When it comes to many of these investments, businesses know they are investing in their future workforce. While this money can be a welcome gift, administrators must consider the level of influence funders are given over curriculum and school reform strategies.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation have both had an outsized impact on school reform strategies undertaken by K-12 schools because of their financial sway. At the post-secondary level, there is also a conversation around whether private donations come with too many strings attached to teaching content. The Koch brothers, for example, have been criticized for bankrolling college programs that emphasize free market ideology. The question is always where to draw the line.