STAMFORD PUBLIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION INC
Educating and Empowering Stamford's Next Generation
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Stamford Public School has over 16,000 students. Of these, 59% qualify for free/reduced price lunch (poverty indicator). Further, 66% of students are minority and 71 different languages are spoken at home. Working together with community volunteers and the district, SPEF's mentoring programs in Stamford served 960 students with free mentoring services so they can be better prepared for post-secondary success.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
College and Career Readiness Programs
(1) Stamford Mentoring Program: Providing mentoring to 17 Stamford Public Schools; supporting 1,000 students in grades 3 through 12 .
(2) Math Tutoring: Providing over 16,000 hours of professional math tutoring.
(3) Scholarships: Administering three different scholarships; distributing $6,000 to low-income, college bound students each year.
(4) Leadership Mentoring: Matching students with mentors for sessions taking place outside of traditional hours.
(5) Early College Studies (ECS): Allowing students the opportunity to graduate high school and earn an associate degree in a technology-based field in 4 to 6 years. SPEF fosters relationships between students and mentors ECS students onsite at local corporations.
(6) Student-Athlete Program: An academic support program that meets after school to foster positive student-athlete development and growth academically, athletically, and social emotionally.
Enrichment Programs
(1) Stamford Odyssey of the Mind: 16 Stamford teams comprised of 105 students
(2) Summer Voyager: A 6-week, full-day summer camp providing academic and enrichment programs for more than 100 rising 4th, 5th and 6th grade students; includes athletics, arts, and STEM activities.
Family Engagement Programs
(1) Books Across Stamford: Distributing over 5,000 new books each year throughout Stamford.
(2) Parent Leadership Training Institute (PLTI): Providing in-depth training to promote strong leadership and advocacy skills; engaged 65 parents and 40 children.
Kindergarten Readiness Programs
(1) Summer Start Program: Providing entering kindergarten students who have not had a formal preschool experience with a six -week, half-day early education program. The program focuses on developing the literacy and mathematics skills aligned to the Connecticut Core State Standards.
(2) PELI Service: Providing literacy assessment to identify the current literacy capabilities of Stamford’s
Pre-K youth.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
2017 Stamford NAACP Darwin Davis Corporate Award 2017
External reviews

Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of students served through SPEF's Stamford Mentoring Program
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Related Program
College and Career Readiness Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
During the 2020-2021 school year SPEF was on track to deliver mentoring to 960 students.
Number of new books given away each year to help build home libraries for pre-K children through 5th grade students.
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Related Program
Family Engagement Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Due to the pandemic, fewer Books Across Stamford events were held from March 2020 - June 2021. Beginning in summer 2021, a full calendar of Books Across Stamford events will resume.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Founded in 1996, the mission of the Stamford Public Education Foundation (SPEF) is to deliver educational programs and resources that elevate student, educator, and parent success by bridging the gap between needs in the Stamford Public Schools and resources in our community. Our goal is to provide the resources and programs needed so that that each and every student in the Stamford Public Schools will graduate high school and enter college, career training or full-time employment ready to succeed.
SPEF provides direct service programming to more than 3,000 students, spread throughout all of the 21 of Stamford’s public schools. We work closely with Stamford parents, teachers, guidance counselors, and school administrators in facilitating our programs. We also work closely with other education-related agencies/programs in CT to share best practices.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
- Continue to measure outcomes of all SPEF programs and use the data to improve and expand reach throughout Stamford
- Work with Board Committee in key areas: Finance, Development, Human Resources, Marketing and Programs
- Operationalize the Strategic plan
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Founded in 1996, SPEF has built a strong reputation for delivering programs and resources that connect college, corporate and community volunteers with Stamford Public School students.
SPEF’s Stamford Mentoring Program was launched in 2010, with 46 students from Dolan Middle School. In 2019-2020, 960 students were served in grades 3 – 12. Today, SPEF’s breadth of programs has grown to include:
- College and Career Readiness: Mentoring, Tutoring, and Post-Secondary Planning
- Family Engagement: Books Across Stamford & Parent Leadership Training
- Enrichment: Summer Voyager camp
- Kindergarten Readiness: Summer Start
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
• SPEF awarded the 2017 Stamford NAACP Darwin Davis Corporate Award
• SPEF provides direct service programming to all 21 of Stamford’s public schools
• SPEF’s Stamford Mentoring Program was launched in 2010, with 46 students from Dolan Middle School, currently serves 1000 students annually
• Highlights of the 2020-21 school year included:
- Over 400 volunteers partnered with SPEF staff to support our mission
- Math tutoring was delivered to 80 ninth grade Stamford High students
- Distributed 5,000+ new books (Books Across Stamford)
- Graduated a diverse group of 23 parent leaders from the Parent Leadership Training Institute
Throughout the pandemic, SPEF found innovative ways to serve the district's 16,652 students in its 21 schools with the launch of its COVID-19 Helping Hands Initiative. This initiative included Home Work Helpers, Grab and Go Meals, TutorU, and Here-to-Help. These programs responded to and provided critical resources to the diverse Stamford Public School community as they navigated remote learning:
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Case management notes, Community meetings/Town halls,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
STAMFORD PUBLIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION INC
Board of directorsas of 10/20/2021
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Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data