KEEP Campaign Update: Where Your Dollars Are Going Thanks to this community's incredible generosity, LPEF has raised over $255,000, with significant corporate matches still coming in. Here's a look at what that means for our kids, and what's possible if we keep going. Tier 1: Our Foundation  The community spoke loud and clear in our priorities survey, and the LPEF Board listened. With donations received to date, LPEF is able to grant funds to support the following for the 202

Published in the March 2026 issue of the Mountain Network News. This fall, 37 families took the time to complete LPEF’s community survey about our annual Keep Excellent Education Programs (KEEP)  campaign. Responses were well distributed from kinder through middle school. The feedback was candid, thoughtful, and incredibly helpful. When families were asked which priorities should be protected even in lean years, two stood far above the rest: arts and music & small class sizes

“We wore trash bags a lot of the time,” says 8th grader Peter Ematrudo. The K-8 art teacher, Helen O'Dea, recently challenged C.T. English students to reimagine an aging mural behind the gym. Students designed a new vision, projected their digital image onto the wall, and brought it to life with paint. The project taught valuable lessons in design, symbolism, collaboration, and production—all while creating a stunning piece of art the school will enjoy for years to come. (Nex

Last December, the Holiday Tree Lighting moved to the Community Center near Building Blocks and launched what looks like it's going to stick as a new mountain tradition. Neighbors showed up in droves for hot cocoa, holiday music, and twinkling lights—proof that sometimes all we need is a reason and a place to gather. A Mountain Effort Last year, Scott Green saw an opportunity to improve the tree lighting and took it upon himself to purchase and install the lights (and all the

There are two primary goals for the annual gala. One is financial, as the community relies on the Loma Public Education Fund to cover the cost of fully educating our students. Last year’s revenue enabled LPEF to cover K-8 art, PE at Loma, and a portion of a 12th teacher at Loma to keep class sizes small.  If funding were the sole objective, however, we could just ask for money. We believe it is also vital to bring our community together to celebrate what makes us special. It

Published in the October 2025 issue of the Mountain Network News . Ever curious about how we decide what programs LPEF actually funds? Or what happens when our KEEP campaign falls short? Here's the real story of how it unfolded last year. It Starts with Teachers' Wish Lists Every spring, Superintendent Kevin Grier asks teachers at both Loma Prieta Elementary and C.T. English Middle School a simple question: what do you need most for next year? Once teachers give their wish li

When we moved from San Francisco up to the mountains, one of the biggest draws was the school district. I wanted my son in a place where...

Published in the July 2025 issue of the Mountain Network News . At the Jogathon awards assembly, our visiting friend Jenny—who teaches art and library in East Bay public and private schools—looked around, smiled, and said, “This feels more like a private school.” While she was impressed by the modern and clean facilities (including the robust library and art studio), what really stood out to her was the energy in the room. The teachers were fully present during the school-wid