Skip to main content

Facebook's Zuckerberg pledges $120 million to Bay Area schools

Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla
Chan have pledged $120 million to Bay Area schools to help underserved
communities in San Francisco, the two wrote in an essay to the San Jose
Mercury News.
The announcement, made in the Bay Area paper on Thursday night, marks
Zuckerberg's latest charitable donation to lagging public education systems. In
2010, the tech tycoon donated $100 million to beleaguered public schools in
Newark, New Jersey.
"The investments we've made are a drop in the bucket compared to the
challenges schools face. But we've seen that targeted investments can be
catalysts for much bigger changes in communities, and give vital support to
leaders and organizations," the couple said.
"Helping improve the quality of public education in this country is something
we both really care about."
The essay cited the Ravenswood school district in particular, which is slated
to receive grant money when the first $5 million is released, where last year
fewer than half of the students were rate as proficient in math and fewer than
40 percent were proficient in English.
The two noted that low-income and minority students in the region struggle to
perform well in the classroom, due in part to a lack of school resources.
The money will be routed through the Startup:Education fund with the aim of
providing computers and internet connectivity to needy schools, offering
teacher training, and helping to fund new district and charter schools among
other initiatives.
Critics however have questioned the effectiveness of Zuckerberg's past
philanthropic endeavors. A recent article in The New Yorker outlined problems
that continue to plague the Newark school system despite the $100 million
donation.
"Everybody’s getting paid, but Raheem still can’t read,” Vivian Cox Fraser,
president of the Urban League of Essex County, told The New Yorker.
Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

RIGHTS OF AN ACCUSED PERSON UNDER THE CONSTITUTION OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA

The constitution of federal republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, provides some measures for trial in criminal cases. These measures are in attempt to give constitutional sanctity, which is fair trial and natural justice.   However, the grundnorn by its special nature provides for pre-trial rights, trial rights as well as post trial rights [1] . These rights are very crucial in a trial both in civil and criminal proceedings. These rights include: Right to life [2]   The right to life is considered as one of the crucial human right as it is deemed the supreme human right and a foundation for other human rights, as none of the other rights would have any value or utility without it. If a man has no life, there is nothing left to human dignity, fair hearing, and the protection of human rights cannot be achieved without respect for the right to life. Thus, the protection of the life is therefore, an essential pre-requisite to the full enjoyment of all other human righ...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE ISSUE OF REINCARNATION, AKUDAYA: A MYTH OR REALITY. By Sam George

The issue of Reincarnation, Akudaya: A Myth or a Reality? Iya ibeji was a popular Ewa Agoyin seller in the whole of Brown street. She got her fame in the street when she moved from selling ofada rice to Beans. No okada driver or bus driver would pass by iya Ibeji's shop without dashing to eat Ewa Agoyin and Bread. The customers in her shop are always massive just as if the shop is a praying ground. The rate at which the people in the locale patronises her shop is akin to how the pilgrims visit the Holy Land. After my secondary school education, I left Ekiti State to settle down in Lagos with our elderst brother. After my first week in Lagos, I decided to familiarize myself with my new environment. After walking a few miles, then I saw the shop of the infamous Iya ibeji. I dashed to the shop just to get my favorite food "Bread and Beans". On getting there, I saw iya Basira; a woman with three kids who died in an auto crash accident along with her husband some years ago. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

LANGUAGE, SOCIETY AND THE INFLUENCE OF MUSIC SLANGS.

                                             ABSTRACT This study is aimed mainly at discovering the sociolinguistic factors motivating the use of slang and their meaning among Nigerian musicians as a social group. All other expositions and considerations are subordinate to the above set goals. This paper has been able to conclude that slang has been in existence for a long time and it is the informal language of musicians which could remain from generations to generations. It could build on its register, add new forms and replacing old forms with new ones. Certain Standard English word denote certain interpretations could have their meaning altered when used as slangs, they become connotation rather than denotation. Finally, slang can be fun to listen to. Mu...
Post a Comment
Read more