Salesforce Gives $19M to Schools

Grants support five school districts across the United States and education nonprofits

New funds mark more than $100 million given to Bay Area school districts to date

San Francisco – September 20, 2021 – Salesforce [NYSE: CRM], the global leader in CRM, today announced $17.25 million in new grants to support five school districts across the United States – San Francisco Unified School District, Oakland Unified School District, Chicago Public Schools, Indianapolis Public Schools, and the New York City Department of Education. In addition, $1.75 million was granted to education nonprofits in the United States and Europe.

The grants support critical programs for education access and advancement, with a focus on racial equity. This series of grants brings Salesforce’s total investment in education to more than $140 million.

As the COVID-19 Delta variant surges, school administrators must adapt to changing conditions in real time and make decisions in an uncertain environment. McKinsey estimates that last year, students lost the equivalent of three months of learning in mathematics and one-and-a-half months of learning in reading. This gap was especially noticeable in schools that predominantly serve students of color. 

Now more than ever, schools need support. With these grants, Salesforce is building upon its longstanding commitment to education to help schools address growing inequities and get students back on track. 

“Back to school looks different this year, and there are new demands on teachers, parents, and students,” said Ebony Beckwith, Chief Philanthropy Officer, Salesforce. “To ensure their success, we’re leaning into our values and bringing the full power of our platform to help support them through another year of pandemic learning.”

Back to school looks different this year, and there are new demands on teachers, parents, and students. To ensure their success, we’re leaning into our values and bringing the full power of our platform to help support them through another year of pandemic learning.”

Ebony Beckwith, Chief Philanthropy Officer, Salesforce

“The past year and a half was a challenge for not only staff but also students. To have a community partner like Salesforce come alongside our school district with such a generous donation is invaluable,” said IPS Superintendent Dr. Alessia Johnson. “These additional resources will help IPS address the specific needs of our students — during and after the pandemic — through learning acceleration, ensuring we can continue to provide 1:1 technology and access to reliable internet service for students, and that we’re also focusing on the whole child through social emotional learning and trauma-informed care. I often say that we’re stronger together and it’s partnerships with organizations like Salesforce that highlights how working together can yield awesome benefits for our children.”

“Salesforce is an invaluable partner to the students and educators of Oakland Unified,” said OUSD Superintendent Dr. Kyla Johnson-Trammell. “The remarkable support they give our middle schools, our teachers, our newcomers, and of course, our computer science students is game-changing. We are able to provide computer science instruction, newcomer support, support for middle schools, and connect students and families to much-needed services through the Education Cloud platform, all of which could not happen this way just a few short years ago. As the African proverb says, it takes a village to raise a child. OUSD is grateful that Salesforce is part of our village.”

$100 million to Bay Area schools since 2012

This year marks a milestone of Salesforce’s nearly decade-long commitment to Bay Area schools. With the new funds announced today, Salesforce will now have given $100 million to San Francisco and Oakland Unified School Districts to date. Today’s announcement includes:

San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD)

• As part of a nine-year partnership, the $7.5M grant will support efforts to address the digital divide, accelerate learning, and continue excellence in STEM and middle school redesign. 
• This grant will provide computer science curriculum, support math and science teachers, recruit teachers for hard-to-staff positions, redesign middle schools, and offer additional equity-driven learning opportunities via Aim High & Black Star Rising. 
• The grant also supports the Principal Innovation Fund, delivering $100,000 per school of unrestricted funds to all SFUSD middle-school principals.

Oakland Unified School District (OUSD)

• This is Salesforce’s sixth year of supporting the district.
• The $7.5M grant will help the district create new social-emotional support programs for students, offer professional growth for teachers, provide computer science and math tutoring, and counsel students who are newcomers to the U.S.
• OUSD will also receive $100,000 Principal Innovation Fund school allocations for each of its middle schools. 
• Additionally, OUSD uses Salesforce.org’s Education Cloud for K-12 to connect staff members in real-time to match students with critical services—from counseling to mental health, nutritional support, and more. 

Supporting education across the U.S.

Salesforce is also continuing its support of school districts in cities with a strong employee base. The longstanding relationships with SFUSD and OUSD have provided a blueprint that guides newer relationships with Chicago, Indianapolis, and New York City schools to support current needs due to the pandemic, and ongoing investments around STEM. These grants include:

Chicago Public Schools (CPS)

• The $750K grant will support CPS in launching a new Healing Centered Framework to address students’ social emotional needs after COVID-19, build the school leadership pipeline, and provide STEM college and career experiences in underserved communities.
• This is Salesforce’s fourth investment in the district and is managed through the Children First Fund, the Chicago Public Schools Foundation

Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS)

• The $750K grant creates crucial new programs to address learning loss, digital divide, and social-emotional wellness after COVID-19.
• This is Salesforce’s fourth year supporting the district.

New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE)

• The $750K grant will help NYCDOE prepare its educators to accelerate student learning, particularly in the communities hit hardest by COVID-19.
• This is Salesforce’s third year supporting the district.

Salesforce doubles down on education commitment globally

In addition to its school district partners, Salesforce is supporting nonprofits across the United States, France, and the United Kingdom that focus on academic achievement, education leadership, and improving access to underprivileged students. Grants include:

• School Board Partners (U.S.): A $250K grant will support the organization to connect, inspire, and support equity-informed elected school board members nationally.
• OneGoal (U.S.): A $500K grant will support the continued digital transformation of OneGoal and empower 10,000 students toward achieving their highest post-secondary aspirations.
• Forum des Images (France): A $500K grant will help improve the academic success of 600 students and to increase teachers’ confidence to adopt digital learning methods in underserved schools.
• The Access Project (UK): A $500K grant will provide mentoring, tutoring, and enrichment support to 320 underprivileged students in London to improve college access.

Employees adopt 130+ schools globally

To date, Salesforce employees have volunteered nearly one million hours to support education and workforce development initiatives.

Through Salesforce’s global Circle the Schools program, employees participate in volunteer activities designed to advance student skills, including literacy in elementary schools, STEM in middle schools, and college and career readiness in high schools. Since 2013, Salesforce employees have adopted more than 130 schools globally in cities, including 34 schools in San Francisco and Oakland.

This year, Salesforce is also encouraging employees and community members to support a new series of education fundraising campaigns.

More information

Philanthropy at Salesforce is funded by a combination of corporate giving and donations from the Salesforce Foundation. To learn more about Salesforce’s commitment to philanthropy, read this and this.