Dear Cleveland Community,

We want to share an urgent challenge our school is facing and ask for your help in forming the Cleveland Culture Fund. OUSD is facing a significant budget shortfall next year that is impacting schools across the district, including Cleveland Elementary. While budget cuts are not new, next year and beyond are especially challenging with the loss of several revenue streams including the COVID relief funds.

Like many of you, we chose Cleveland Elementary because of the school values and the strength of this community. An equity and inclusion based culture is essential in creating a positive learning environment that supports student well-being, encourages collaboration, enhances teacher morale, and fosters parental involvement. It sets the foundation for children's future academic success and personal growth. Moreover, diverse school staff representation reflective of the student body helps students feel seen, valued, and empowered. It gives them a sense of belonging and helps bridge cultural gaps leading to more positive and productive learning environments that also challenge prevalent racial and gender stereotypes.

After investing multiple years in school culture transformation, we were excited to hire Tony Knight as Community School Manager at the start of this year. In just five months, Mr. Knight made himself an integral part of our school community–becoming our point person for school culture, ensuring all our staff are receiving restorative justice training, and providing invaluable social emotional support to students, especially our boys of color and those students in understaffed and most impacted classrooms.

Our school has benefited from the generosity of the Cleveland community including many of you who continue to commit time and resources to support our school. Your funds have been essential in funding enrichment programs such as eco-literacy, art and music. With your support, we have raised enough money to continue these programs next year.

With the Cleveland Culture Fund, we are seeking to close the additional gap left by the OUSD budget deficit. Your financial support will secure Mr. Knight’s position as our Community School Manager. The PTA has generously pledged $40k in funds towards our goal of $160,000 and any amount you can donate will make a significant impact. Now more than ever is our opportunity to invest more of our energy and resources in this public space for everyone’s benefit.

Here are three ways to get involved:

Share your ideas or join the Cleveland Culture Fund planning team by contacting fundraising.cleveland@gmail.com
Contribute to the Cleveland Culture Fund
Share this fundraising effort with your network. If you work at a corporation, consider inquiring with your HR department about corporate gifts including stock and matching gifts.

Yours in responsibility and inclusivity,

Mike Chung, Stefanie Liang Chung, Sarah Malashock, Sarah McCarthy, Huong Nguyen-Yap, Ronak Davé Okoye, Amy Parente, Sonia Russell, Mariam Wakili

Cleveland Culture Fund

Team Members