Numerous individuals, programs and schools across South Seattle and South King County are committed to advancing systems and policies that ensure every child and young person in our region has the opportunity to thrive. As a part of the Road Map Project, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and many of their philanthropic colleagues have been supporting education institutions, community-based organizations, state and local governments, community leaders, families, education advocates and employers as they collaborate in building systems that work for children and youth of color and low-income students. Over the past decade, this collective impact effort has achieved progress in a number of areas, including a 12-point increase in on-time high school graduation across the seven school districts and a 50 percent drop in exclusionary discipline for K–5 students. The Road Map Project provides a great example of the ways in which philanthropic entities, whether community foundations, United Ways, or global foundations, can work together to bring about positive change in their communities.
Join David Bley, Director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in the Pacific Northwest, as he participates in a panel discussing how funders can learn from and with each other and align their efforts to advance shared or similar goals. Sally Gillis of the Seattle Foundation and Lynda Petersen of the Community Center for Education Results will join him in discussing how a wide range of public and private funders have found important roles to play in advancing equity in education across our region.