Dear Friends of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools,

We are pleased to announce that the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, a program of the Council for Excellence in Government, has been awarded a $700,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The grant period begins in November 2007 and extends through December 31, 2008. This most recent grant adds to two earlier grants from the foundation over the past two years, which totaled $300,000.

We are deeply gratified by the ongoing support and the opportunity to contribute to the foundation’s work to “ensure that more students leave school prepared for college, work, and citizenship.” We look forward to continued shared efforts to keep preparation for citizenship strongly represented in our national educational goals.

The news of this grant could not come at a better time. Over the past year, the Campaign has sharpened its strategic priorities, based on discussions with the Campaign Steering Committee, to include a stronger emphasis on national communications and advocacy, state and federal accountability policies, and exemplary school and district programs. These strategic priorities were affirmed by the Gates Foundation and embedded throughout our proposal. We consider the three areas of activity to be interconnected and interdependent, and the work over the next fourteen months will be conducted with this in mind. Clarifying more effective policy recommendations will help shape our national advocacy work, just as the experience with the laboratory of schools will inform and help shape the policy work.

For this work, the Campaign will be building on its existing partnerships and shared work with coalition partners represented on the Campaign Steering Committee, and continuing to draw on expertise from national research organizations such as the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE). Further details regarding the implementation of the work will be discussed at the upcoming meeting of the Campaign Steering Committee on December 15th.

Support from private foundations forms the vast majority of the Campaign’s operating expenses. Recent grants from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and the Annenberg Foundation round out our budget for 2007 and 2008. We are grateful for their enduring support. Without such strong support from the philanthropic community, our achievements over the past four years would not have been possible. We look forward to building on that record of success!

Please catch up on other Campaign news and events on our website at: www.civicmissionofschools.org.

Patrick R. Phillips
Executive Director
Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools
Council for Excellence in Government
1301 K St NW, Suite 450 West
Washington, DC 20005
202-530-3237