We approached the year with a forward-looking, fearless focus on the future and asked ourselves “how could we help our state recover and emerge from the pandemic better and stronger than ever?”

Together, we sought out new ways to answer this call. We found solutions to help accelerate how we get critical relief dollars, emergency aid, and student scholarships into the hands of Californians. We continued to push forward the Vision for Success with the California Community Colleges, a reminder of what it means to take radical approaches to student success with equity at the core. We expanded student peer-to-peer outreach programs on campuses to connect students with resources addressing basic needs and environmental equity. We launched new workforce programs that addressed long-standing social and economic inequities in the education-to-employment pipelines.

All of this, and more, was made possible through innovation – measured risk-taking, testing and trying new, bold approaches, and pushing ourselves to expand our impact where it’s needed most. Innovation is a key core value at the Foundation, as our mission – more urgent than ever – requires us to act with open minds and embrace the power of creativity, resourcefulness, and continuous learning to address inequities and meet community needs.