As many kids prepare to go back to school, we’re thinking about how we as a community can continue to improve educational outcomes for all students. All Hands Raised is a nonprofit advocating intelligently for excellent and equitable education for all students since 1994 right here in Portland, Oregon. With a strong focus on racial equity, All hands Raised brings together partners and stakeholders to identify all of the barriers to kids’ success and remove them.

Community integration has always been an important part of who we are at Equilibrium, so we are excited to support an organization with a similar vision of community. Their mission statement is:

Transforming children into educated, independent grown-ups is the job of the entire community. Who, exactly, is the community? All of us. You are. We are.

All Hands Raised is committed to the continual process of improving education for all students, pursuing fundamental systems change to make generational improvements. This is a nonprofit that understands that education for our kids benefits our community as a whole. The current focus areas include Reducing Disproportionate Discipline & Building Positive School Culture, Improving Student Attendance and Engagement, Increasing Access to Post-Secondary Education, and Forging Pathways From School to Careers.

Complex, local problems need complex, local solutions.

All Hands Raised relies on comprehensive data to drive their education solutions, highlighting their commitment to systems that work and work for the broadest possible range of students. They work on the ground with School Community Site Teams, to collect data in seven key work areas, including equity in school discipline as well as K-12 attendance and academic milestones throughout the school years. The data is disaggregated by race and individual school districts for each indicator, allowing them to see what is improving and what is not—and for whom.

Successes and failures are then shared with the entire school, across other school districts through Cross-District Learning Communities and throughout the wider community. Key findings and themes are identified with the help of Work Area Leadership Groups, and are shared with community leaders who can influence budget and policy to create lasting change through their Board of Directors and Partnership Council.

All of us must keep our hands up, stay at the table, and work in new ways to find these solutions.

This month we will be matching patient donations to All Hands Raised. To donate directly (unmatched) and for more information, click here.