The nonprofit Partnership for Los Angeles Schools provides educational support to improve student learning. (photo courtesy of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools)

The Los Angeles Unified School District and the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools have received a $16.8 million five-year grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to continue programs to enhance and revolutionize math instruction.

In 2015, the partnership launched an initiative to introduce high-quality instructional curricula in LAUSD schools. Since the program’s inception, the district and partnership have implemented an upgraded math curriculum in 223 secondary schools.

The LAUSD has invested more than $73 million in transforming instructional practices in math since 2020. In the last year alone, the investments have led to math proficiency in the district that outpaced the state overall, particularly for higher-need student populations.

Supplementing the professional learning opportunities offered by LAUSD, the partnership and district worked closely with educational organizations, including Leading Educators and the Achievement Network, to offer direct support to schools. The support includes coaching, teacher professional development and group learning opportunities for LAUSD school leaders and regional directors.

The new round of funding will support ongoing district efforts to improve and build coherence around math instruction. The partnership will work with LAUSD to provide support in the categories of District-Level Work, Regional-Level Support and School-Level Focus.

The LAUSD and the partnership serve as a national model for curriculum adoption and implementation. The five-year timeframe allows the partnership to significantly contribute to LAUSD’s long-term goals for instructional improvement.

“In recent years, the coordinated investments in improving math instructional practice have shown significant gains for Los Angeles students,” LAUSD Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said. “We are proud of our meaningful collaboration with our educators, the Division of Instruction and the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, and look forward to the incredible results that we will achieve with our district’s significant investments in materials and interventions in tandem with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant.”

Guadalupe Guerrero, CEO of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, said there is tremendous potential for the initiative to improve math education across the district.

“This investment from the Gates Foundation represents a significant opportunity to not only transform math instruction here in Los Angeles but also to serve as a beacon for other districts across California and the nation,” Guerrero said. “By providing our educators with the tools, training and support they need to implement high-quality instructional materials, we are setting a new standard for what’s possible in public education.”

Launched in 2007, the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools is an independent nonprofit focusing on accelerating achievement for Black and Latino students. For information, visit lasud.net and partnershipla.org.