Forum Informs Education Investors

3/17/2018

Earlier this month, 150 funders assembled in Memphis, Tennessee for the national K-12 philanthropy forum. The two-day event informed investors on how to best allocate their dollars to improve education equity in America. Tosha Downey from the Memphis Education Fund and Hyde Foundation CEO, Barbara Hyde, share their three takeaways from this year's event:

1. Community engagement is key. Education reformers don't always think to involve the communities they are trying to serve. Local buy-in is crucial to ensuring solutions are effective and adopted.
2. The 'portfolio model' is the way to go. Instead of pitting charter schools against public ones, schools should be diversified like stock portfolios: both worthy of investment.
3. Opt for quality over growth. Memphis grew its charter sector too quickly, sacrificing quality for quantity, Hyde warns. Instead, investors can bolster quality by strengthening teacher pipelines and curriculum and funding wraparound services.

The next K-12 forum is scheduled for April 2019 in Denver. LEARN MORE

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