KEEP Campaign: Where Your Dollars Are Going

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 2026–27 school year:

1. Art classes at Loma Elementary and CT English

2. Developmental P.E. classes at Loma Elementary

3. 12th teacher at Loma Elementary 

The community's priorities aligned closely with those of our teachers and administration — a genuinely encouraging outcome. Due to an unexpected staffing change detailed below, Prop 28 funding, which guarantees state funding (based on enrollment) for arts and music, will now cover a portion of K-8 art. This reduces LPEF’s originally anticipated Tier 1 target from $347,000 to $270,000 which puts us in a strong position to do even more for our kids heading into the final stretch of KEEP.

Tier 2: Let's See How Far We Can Go

We could stop at Tier 1, but we want to give our community the chance to secure more for our children. Based on LPEF Board discussions, input from the District, and your feedback, our Tier 2 funding priorities, in order, are:

1. STEM Elective for all grades at CT (~$20k) Currently, Project Lead the Way — a nationally recognized computer science curriculum — is only offered in 6th and 8th grade, while the neighboring Los Gatos middle school offers three years of computer science electives. Adding a section not only rounds out the curriculum for our 7th graders, but will also reduce class sizes in other 7th grade elective sections (without this addition, art classes for next year’s 7th graders are likely to exceed 30 students per class). 

2. K-5 Music (~$40k) As many of you may have heard, our beloved music teacher Casey Lelake is relocating to England at the end of this school year. The district is opening a search for a part-time K-5 music teacher and LPEF funding can help make that position a reality. Research consistently shows the developmental benefits of music at the elementary level — spanning math, reading, and beyond. We're focused on K-5 because that's where the impact is greatest and where finding a qualified teacher is most feasible.

3. Expanded Intervention Programs (up to ~$60k) If the district is unable to fill the music teacher role (or if we raise enough money to cover both!) LPEF would work with the district to appropriately expand intervention support. Options include expanded after-school math help for 4th–8th grade, increased in-school math and reading intervention for younger grades, and additional reading support at CT. An after-school math intervention program launched in January has already shown early success, and we'd love to build on that momentum.

Every Dollar Beyond Tier 1 Unlocks More for Our Kids

We're proud of what this community has already accomplished. If you haven't donated yet, there's still time — and if you've already given, consider whether you're able to do a little more. Every dollar brings us closer to preparing our students to meet the demands of high school with confidence.

You can track our progress and make your donation at the KEEP donation website. And please spread the word to your friends and neighbors as we progress toward 100% participation.