Big Shoulders Fund

Big Shoulders Fund supports a network of 72 high-need schools in the Chicago area. These schools serve nearly 20,000 children, 70 percent of whom reside in low-income households. In addition, as a result of a fully funded charitable donation, it has extended its programming to 20 schools in Northwest Indiana, reaching an additional 6,000 children.<br><br>The funds raised by Big Shoulders Fund go directly towards supporting a variety of programs and operational needs including scholarship support and academic enrichment for students, operational improvements for schools, leadership development programs for the next generation of school leaders, and academic programs and professional development for teachers. <br><br>Our network of schools are seen as anchors in their communities and in the lives of the families they serve. It is our mission to help Chicago's children achieve their dreams through access to a quality, values-based education.

All Chicago children are prepared to succeed in life as thoughtful citizens who engage in their comm

Goal One: Attract and retain school-based talent .

Goal Two: Growth in Big Shoulders Fund Plus and NWI Schools Enrollment .

Goal Three: Big Shoulders Fund Plus – take steps to prove out the optimal model.

Leadership Development is very important for Big Shoulders Fund particularly in our schools. This year we have worked to expand our Talent Development Pipeline. With our Talent Development Pipeline, we are working to create a dynamic, supportive environment that attracts, develops, and provides ample supply of diverse talent, increasingly representative of communities served, at multiple levels of distributed leadership within Big Shoulders Fund schools. The primary goal of this work is to ensure long-term effectiveness and capacity to ensure all children are prepared to succeed in life as thoughtful citizens who engage in their communities. This work is being done through a focus on recruitment and training at all levels of our network of schools, professional development and coaching sessions to help teachers, aspiring leaders, and new leaders develop their capacity to improve student outcomes, but also increase retention of staff within the network of schools.

Big Shoulders Fund has adapted to the changing circumstances to ensure our schools remain a place for communities to turn to and have their needs met. We did it in many ways: • As the 2020-21 school year kicked off, the Academics and Operations Teams worked to help school leaders plan for a safe return to in-person/hybrid learning. We distributed PPE including thousands of masks, gallons of hand sanitizer per school, and cleaning supplies to ensure that children and staff alike can remain safe in their schools. We conducted building walkthroughs with school leadership to plan for socially distant and effective classrooms. Our schools have been able to continue to provide in-person throughout the course of the school year through innovative use of classroom technology, support from the Academics Team and the LEARNS site. • Nationally, K-8 enrollment across Catholic schools is down by 8.1%. Comparatively, Big Shoulders Fund schools have seen a K-8 enrollment decline of only 6.1 % (in aggregate), due in part to providing safe in-person learning environments and in part due to our considerable investment in scholarship support to assist students and families most impacted by the pandemic. In 2020, Big Shoulders awarded nearly $6.5 million in scholarships to 4,750 students from households reporting a median gross income of $36,274. • Continuing to ensure that students, families, and community members had access to food during these unprecedented times with over 100,000 meals distributed in the first three months of the pandemic. We continued to distribute meals and essential supplies to students and families. Plus, provided aid to families who experienced job loss or decreased hours during the pandemic through rent support. The rent program provided over $200,000 to 125 families supporting 232 students at 39 schools. These programs have been a boost to the school, but also the community and helped the schools to be seen as beacons of hope in their neighborhoods.