Location: San Francisco, CA

Partners in School Innovation (PartnersSI) is a service organization working to transform teaching and learning in the lowest-performing U.S. public schools so that every child, regardless of background, thrives in schools. PartnersSI believes that the single strongest lever for increasing student achievement is to improve the quality of teaching in schools. PartnersSI applies a research-based, systematic approach to achieving school and district transformation. Its staff work alongside school and district colleagues to achieve significant gains in student achievement, as well as build the organizational capacity required to sustain these results.

Since its founding in 1993, PartnersSI has partnered with over 10 districts and 50 schools serving over 65,000 students, teachers, and principals. By 2021, the organization plans to enable the successful transformation of at least three diverse urban school districts outside of the San Francisco Bay Area, help to train 10,000 educator change agents in districts around the country, and inform federal, state, and local policy arenas on districts, school, and teacher effectiveness.

To learn more about PartnersSI, please visit http://www.partnersinschools.org/

Location: New York, NY

Turnaround for Children, Inc. (“TFC”) strives to fulfill the promise of public education by helping high-poverty, low-performing public schools create positive learning environments that foster healthy intellectual, social, and emotional growth in every student. TFC envisions an America in which every public school, in every community, enables each student to reach his or her potential as a learner and citizen. TFC partners with schools serving high-poverty communities, increasing each school’s capacity to anticipate and better serve the needs of students.  TFC’s 3-4 year School Transformation Program focuses on building the school-wide proficiency of all staff in targeted behavioral and instructional practices, implementing critical systems of intervention and intensive support, and realigning mental health and social service systems, all of which enhance the school climate and optimize student performance.

With a central office in midtown Manhattan and programs in Harlem, the Bronx, and Washington DC, Turnaround expects to continue to grow and add programs in NYC as well as new areas around the Northeast next year.

Location: New York, NY

Civic Builders is the oldest, largest and most successful charter school developer in the nation. Civic’s model for school development has earned numerous accolades and has been adopted by other development entities across the country. Since its inception in 2002, Civic has established a proven track-record of delivering high-quality charter school facilities on-time and on-budget.

Location: Washington, DC

Founded in 2006, Credit Builders Alliance (CBA) addresses the staggering fact that in today’s credit-dependent economy some 40% of American adults have no access to affordable bank credit. CBA is a nonprofit social enterprise that serves as a vital bridge between the large credit bureaus and the local community development organizations who work one on one to help underserved clients build credit as a financial asset. We are focused on increasing the transparency of the U.S. credit system and ensuring that its benefits are available to underbanked populations and communities. Our growing membership - a nationwide network of U.S. nonprofit organizations - includes nearly 300 nonprofit organizations that provide microfinance services and financial education to underbanked consumers in rural and urban communities across the country. CBA pursues its mission through three main activities:

• CBA Reporter—a one-stop shop providing ongoing technical support to empower hundreds of CDFIs, microfinance and community nonprofits in the U.S. to report monthly loan portfolio data via CBA to the major credit bureaus to build credit for underserved entrepreneurs and consumers
• CBA Access—opportunity for nonprofits to access consumer and business credit reports as part of financial education with underbanked individuals and entrepreneurs
• CBA Knowledge Sharing—online toolkit, webinars, workshops and on-site trainings for financial services nonprofits in the U.S. aimed at sharing best practices focused on financial capability and microloan service delivery to low-income and underbanked individuals and entrepreneurs

To learn more about Credit Builders Alliance, please visit http://www.creditbuildersalliance.org.

Location: Bellingham, WA

BALLE’s audacious vision is to create, within a generation, a global network of interconnected local economies that work in harmony with nature to support a healthy, prosperous and joyful life for all people.

At BALLE we believe that local business is the key to solving our communities’ toughest challenges and the smartest way to create real prosperity. So we connect the best people, ideas and resources from across North America to help make it happen. Founded in 2002, BALLE connects visionary local leaders so they can find inspiration and support. Through intense collaboration, we identify and promote the most innovative business models for creating healthier, sustainable and prosperous communities. And with a growing network of 25,000 local entrepreneurs spanning 80 communities, we’re leveraging our collective voice to drive new investment, scale the best solutions and harness the power of locally owned, independent business to transform the communities where we work and live.

Over the past decade, BALLE has grown steadily to become North America’s top organization dedicated to strengthening groups of local businesses that are focused on the sustainability and prosperity of their own communities. Today, BALLE is poised to dramatically accelerate its growth. With an enormous awakening energy toward local economies in the public consciousness, strong support of national Foundation partners, a dedicated and well-connected board and staff team, and a new strategic plan built with the input and support of visionary local leaders from across North America, BALLE’s time is now. 

To learn more about BALLE, please visit http://www.livingeconomies.org.