Incorporated in 1992, the HBEF is a fund-raising organization for Hermosa Beach public schools. Operated entirely by volunteers, our focus is to meet the school district’s educational needs by funding instructional programs in science, technology, foreign language and other subjects. The HBEF enhances our schools by funding programs not paid for by the state.

The HBEF Annual Appeal is an annual campaign to raise money for the Hermosa Beach City School District. The appeal aims to raise funds or our District so that we can maintain the following: smaller class sizes in grades K-3, libraries at View and Valley, a physical education program for grades 1-5, credentialed science lab instructor for grades 3-5, 21st Century Curriculum and Technology and middle school electives. These programs provide direct instructional support for our children and yet, they are not required by the State of California. The intent of the Annual Appeal is to raise the funds for our school district to ensure that these critical programs are not cut from our children’s education in Hermosa Beach.

Quality public school districts in California today are a public-private partnership because the state of California does not adequately fund public educations. The barebones funding coming from the state is sub-standard in today’s environment. The national average of per student public education funding is about $11,000. Hermosa Beach school district receives about $5,000 per student from the state. California, once ranked first in the nation for education spending, is now among the lowest in the country in terms of per-student K-12 funding.

Funding for California’s schools has evolved through a combination of court decisions, legislative action, government regulations and voter-approved initiatives (including Proposition 13). The result is a system in which school revenue is controlled at the state level. Our property taxes go to Sacramento and less than 50 cents of every dollar comes back to our district.

Unfortunately, we are eligible for very few grants for public school districts. Grant money is almost always tied to economically disadvantaged communities and/or underperforming schools.

Yes. Teachers as well as the administration have taken a pay cut through furlough days. No one is paid for furlough days since school is not in session. In addition, administrative staff has been reduced by one position when the superintendent and special education director jobs were merged into one and taken over by Superintendent Escalante.

Our students actually receive very little from the lottery –approximately $130 per pupil. Lottery funds don’t just go to K-12 schools; they support students in all areas of public education including Community Colleges, the University of California, the California State University system, Adult Education, Charter Schools and schools at the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation –Division of Juvenile Justice.

Yes, you may allocate 100% of your donation to any of the following program(s): K-3 class size preservation, libraries at View and Valley, physical education program for grades 1-5, science labs for grades 3-5, 21st Century Curriculum and Technology, and/or middle school electives.

All donations of any amount are important. Every child benefits and every donation counts. We would like 100% of our Hermosa Beach school families to donate at the level that is right for them. We also have a recurring payment program where a fixed amount can be charged to a credit card each month. As an example, $50 per month over the course of 10 months of school will add up to a $500 donation.

Yes, you may easily pay in installments. Donations can be broken down into monthly or quarterly payments with an automatic recurring credit card charge. You can set up a recurring donation on our website or by filling out a donor form. All funds need to be received by June 30, 2013 to be counted in our current funding drive.

The Annual Appeal and Hearts of Hermosa (HOH) are two separate events. Funds donated through the Annual Appeal go 100% to the school. Hearts of Hermosa profit is split 80% to the school and 20% to the HBEF endowment fund. HOH sponsors are thanked separately in the Surf Report and The Beach Reporter.

Absolutely! We hope that everyone will contribute. Some can afford to contribute more than others, but it means so much to know the whole community is providing support. Your donation does make a difference!

The HBEF raises funds through the Annual Appeal, Hearts of Hermosa and various other events in order to supplement funding for student programs. PTO has many fundraisers throughout the year with funds used for field trip buses, playground equipment, teacher supplies and accelerated reader and math (just to name a few). All fundraising efforts by both HBEF and HVPTO are extremely important and add to the quality of learning for all our students.

It really does take a village to make HBEF events as successful as they are. Our annual dinner/dance/auction, Hearts of Hermosa, the new Wine Walk party plus many smaller events need a legion of helpers to run smoothly. Join our team!

Please start by watching our informative video which talks about who we are and what we do for the schools. You can email questions by clicking here. Finally, you are also encouraged to get involved and attend our HBEF meetings. Meetings take place in the Valley School’s Tech Lab at 7:30 pm on the second Tuesday of January, March, May, June, July, September and November.

The 2012-2013 HBEF Annual Appeal is chaired by Maggie Curtis and Shelby Gonosey. You can contact Maggie via e-mail at: maggiepcurtis@verizon.net and Shelby at Shelby@wildplum.tv.