The S.H. Cowell Foundation makes grants to support public elementary and secondary schools (K-12) and school districts because we believe that education is one of the most fundamental ways to improve quality-of-life and create opportunities for children living in poverty. We are committed to neighborhood public schools because they are the schools on which most families rely.

While it's extraordinarily difficult to remake a vast and complex institution like the public schools, Cowell still believes that neighborhood schools can respond to the ever-rising expectations that we, as a society, hold for them.

Nonetheless, given the well-documented link between parents' income and children's school success, it comes are no surprise that most of the schools that have been identified as "under-performing" under current state and federal accountability rules are located in high-poverty communities. Those schools now find themselves under tremendous pressure to raise students' annual state test scores immediately -- and most have done so, to a point.

Unfortunately, strategies that quickly raise test scores from "poor" to "fair" may not give students the education they need to fulfill the state performance standards. For example, an intense focus on basic, discrete reading skills may not help students understand and apply ideas from what the read. Similarly, in math, a narrow focus on computational skills may not prepare students to think mathematically and solve complext problems. In any subject, the ability to choose a correct answer from a list may not translate into an ability to express deep understandings and generate original ideas. Yet, the standards -- and real life -- require students to do all these things.

Within this environment, Cowell makes grants to help improve the quality of teaching and to foster student achievement. In general, the grant projects we support are aligned with the standards and accountability goals set by state and federal authorities; however, we do not support quick fixes that may lift test scores but leave schools fundamentally unchanged. We do not believe that any one curriculum focus or teaching method is a "silver bullet" that will make the difference for all kids. Rather, we invest in the development of master teachers and high-functioning, purposeful schools that respond to the needs and capabilities of each child so that students not only test well, but also learn well.

Education Funding Criteria