JBMF seeks to advance educational outcomes for Dual Language Learners and English Learners in the Central Valley via four Key Priority Areas that guide our work:

Four Key Priority Areas that Guide Our Work:

1. Developing Leadership: Administrators, teachers, and parents must develop as leaders in serving Pre-K English Learners and understand that improving outcomes for English Learners is a shared responsibility.
2. Building Educator Capacity: Teachers must have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to utilize instruction that best meets the needs of Pre-K English Learners.
3. Using Data: Districts must use evidence and data to make decisions about instruction and programs that will promote better outcomes for Pre-K English Learners.
4. Family Engagement: Districts must encourage Pre-K English Learner family participation and engagement through outreach, education, and training.

Our Approach:

JBMF employs a 3-pronged approach to grantmaking that includes direct service, partnerships, and a focus on policy.

Growing Strong Learners: Direct Service
Our Direct Service approach involves grantmaking directly to school districts.  Our district partners utilize innovative best practices that address our 4 Key Priority Areas and our overall goal of Kindergarten readiness for Dual Language Learners.

Read our current District Partner stories.

Growing Strong Learners: Partnerships
JBMF seeks to partner with other foundations, non-profit organizations, community groups, and institutions of higher education that share similar goals.

Current partnerships include:

• The Emerging Bilingual Collaborative (EBC) is a joint effort of five funders: the California Community Foundation, Heising-Simons, Silver Giving, and Sobrato, working together with JBMF to strengthen the skills, knowledge, and capacity of California educators to more successfully support Dual Language Learners and English Learners in PreK through 3rd grade. We work at three levels: Educator Preparation, Educator Development, and Educator Mobilization.
• California Education Partners’ Preschool Through Third Grade Coherence Collaboration (P3CC) brings together cross-functional teams from participating districts to address the challenge of making the transition from preschool to kindergarten (and beyond) as seamless as possible, especially for Dual Language Learners. This partnership activity is another joint effort of several funding partners, specifically: Sobrato Family Philanthropies, Silver Giving Foundation, Heising-Simons Foundation, and JBMF.
• Philanthropic Ventures Foundation (California Department of Education Partnership) UPK Communications Project is a partnership of JBMF with the California Department of Education – Opportunities for All Branch and Heising Simons Foundation, Sobrato Philanthropies, Balmer Group, David & Lucile Packard Foundation to reach diverse California communities about the state’s transition to Universal Pre-K.

Growing Strong Learners: Policy
JBMF supports local and statewide policy efforts as they relate to Early Childhood Education, Dual Language Learners and English Learners. Our current projects include:

• Californians Together: The Multilingual Learner Consortium project is a partnership with Californians Together and Sobrato Philanthropies to replicate Los Angeles’ successful Consortium for English Learner Success in the Central Valley.