Help us make lasting change for our children and their families
December 16, 2019
Dear Friends –
As a former principal in Portland Public Schools, I have a unique perspective of the work of All Hands Raised. During my time at George Middle School, I witnessed how All Hands Raised built relationships within the community to improve student outcomes—and experienced first-hand the impact their support had on our school culture and, in turn, our students. Now as All Hands Raised CEO, I invite you to join me in ensuring we prioritize the success of all kids throughout Multnomah County.
At All Hands Raised, we believe all adults share the responsibility for improving outcomes for our kids. I know the potential impact of such involvement—I attended Portland schools for 13 years and the adults willing to step up to this responsibility helped me immensely. All Hands Raised is the backbone of a coordinated effort to identify what will help our kids be better students and live better lives. And it’s not about messages and marketing—educators and community partners, along with All Hands Raised staff, work tirelessly towards this objective every single day. Your support will assist in efforts such as:
- Maintaining a relentless focus on racial equity and working together with partners to create more opportunities for our children and youth.
- Continuing the challenging work to erase disparities in school discipline and finding practices that improve academic and social outcomes.
- Increasing ninth grade credit attainment, a critical indicator for being on track to graduate from high school.
- Ensuring more students have access to post-secondary opportunities. The number of high school students completing federal financial aid forms throughout Multnomah County has increased 11.1 percentage points since 2014.
I am fortunate to have been involved in the work on the ground as a member of the All Hands Raised Partnership during my tenure as an educator and administrator. While I was deeply aware of the work of All Hands Raised before I started as CEO, I did not know how critical the support of individuals like you was to ensuring this work continued. Ninety percent of All Hands Raised funding comes from private sources—contributions from community members like you make the work we do to improve outcomes for kids possible.
I speak for the entire board and staff when I say thank you for your commitment to and investment in the success of our students. With your continued support, we will keep up the work of better aligning the community’s collective efforts—in partnership with our schools and many critical partners—to make lasting change for our children and their families.
Sincerely,
Lavert Robertson
CEO, All Hands Raised
