Today marks the second week of Aim High at Willie Brown Jr. Middle School, our newest campus in San Francisco. Although it’s only been six days since our program launched, the notion of a new Bayview campus had been on the minds of Aim High leadership for years. “We really pride ourselves on locating Aim High campuses in high need neighborhoods,” said Alec Lee, Aim High co-founder and executive director. In 2015, Aim High launched Vision 2020, a new strategic initiative positioning the program to launch five new campuses by the close of 2020. Meanwhile, San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education Commissioner Sandra Lee Fewer had an idea for Aim High, too. Fewer wanted to know if the organization would be interested in working with the newly renovated and re-opened Willie Brown Jr. Middle School. The prospect of returning to the Bayview excited Aim High, and thus began preparations for a new campus.

One of the first—and largest—obstacles to launching a new campus is securing sufficient funding. Thankfully for Aim High and SFUSD, the Bay Area is home to one of the world’s leaders in corporate philanthropy: Salesforce. “Philanthropy started on day one at Salesforce, which is very different from a lot of other companies,” said Salesforce.org Nonprofits Account Executive (and former Aim High teacher) Iain Anderson. “Philanthropy is more of an afterthought for a lot of other companies. But with Salesforce, they like to say that philanthropy is ‘baked in.’ It’s a place where people want to work because of what they give, and not just what they do.”    Salesforce has placed a great emphasis on supporting and enhancing middle school education throughout the Bay Area and nation-wide. “We want to ensure inclusive and quality education for all, and promote lifelong learning, specifically in the middle grades,” said Ebony Frelix, Senior Vice President of Philanthropy and Engagement at Salesforce.org. “This is a crucial age because it’s when kids, especially girls, lose interest in math and science.” To further their support for middle school education in San Francisco, Salesforce partnered with SFUSD and Mayor Ed Lee. The partnership has brought $14 million to the school district over the last three years, with a significant portion earmarked for Aim High and the campus at Willie Brown Middle School. “This campus would not have happened without the Salesforce grant,” said Alec Lee. “It was really our anchor funding.” After funding was secured, the next step was finding the best site directors for the job. There was immediately a clear choice that came to mind for Lee and other Central Office employees: Michelle Cody, a founding science teacher at WBMS, and an Aim High graduate and teacher.

“Michelle was the perfect choice for two reasons,” said Alec Lee. “First, her story is an Aim High story. She really represents the organization at its finest. Secondly, she is committed to ensuring equity and opportunity in the Bayview. She has a deep and powerful understanding of the challenges kids face in that neighborhood as well as the courage to embrace those challenges. She’s in it for the long haul.” Before Aim High even launched at Willie Brown Middle School, Michelle Cody was already thinking about how the newest campus would be infused the Aim High culture. “There are certain Aim High traditions that make Aim High what it is,” said Michelle. “But I also think that the Aim High culture is about making a site work for itself. It’s about making sure our site is in touch with the energy of our students and ourselves. As a staff, we’ve done a lot of culture-building, and there’s been a lot of excitement and work. We’re trying to educate, motivate, and inspire. We’re trying to work as a cohesive unit to stay true to the mission and make this summer amazing for our students.” Now that the anticipation of the first day has passed, Michelle feels very excited: “There are so many great things going on this summer! I’m excited for our 6th graders to have a career day at GoPro and for our 7th graders to go to the Tactile Dome. I’m excited about our teachers. They’re super socially conscious, so I’m excited to see them in their classrooms. Finally, for the kids that may have had a rough school year at Willie Brown Middle School, I’m excited for them to fall back in love with learning.”   Rounding out the stellar team the campus is Co-Site Director Gabriel Sanchez, a professional educator with a decade of classroom experience. He and Michelle met while attending grad school at University of San Francisco. Along with their passionate staff of teachers, interns, and TAs, Gabe and Michelle are sure to provide a magical and memorable summer for each of their students. Thank you to the generous support of the Salesforce Foundation, our new campus at Willie Brown Middle School has become a reality.