Teachers credit Foundation 65 grants with boosting student belonging and early‑learning outcomes

At the June 2 Committee of the Whole meeting, multiple teachers and Foundation 65's executive director spoke during public comment to highlight the nonprofit's grants that support teacher‑led programs in Evanston schools.

Alyssa Tran, a sixth‑grade special education math teacher at Shute Middle School, described a Foundation 65 grant that funded a Chute Wolfpack leadership cohort for middle‑school girls of color, a team‑building trip and materials that educators said fostered belonging and leadership. "We noticed a change right away with the girls on the bus...on the way back, they weren't the same girls," Tran said.

Alyssa Zaravel, a kindergarten teacher at Kingsley Elementary, described a multi‑sensory materials grant that purchased tactile books, sensory jars, field trips to Wagner Farm and other tools; she said the pilot will expand into eight classrooms across four schools next year. "Every single kindergartner in my class knew how to identify character, setting, problem and resolution in a story," Zaravel said.

Alicia Wortowski, executive director of Foundation 65, summarized the organization's priorities — learning interventions targeted at BIPOC students; family engagement projects; and programs that foster dignity, empathy and racial consciousness — and urged board members and community members to support the nonprofit's work through donations and sponsorships.

Board members thanked presenters and noted the presentations as public comment; no board action was taken.