Our Mission
The Beverly Hills Education Foundation is funding a world class education at each of the five Beverly Hills public schools with financial support beyond what limited public sources provide. BHEF bridges the community, civic leaders and businesses with our schools to ensure academic, athletic and artistic excellence.
Our Story
The Beverly Hills Education Foundation was established in 1978 by concerned parents and community leaders. The first of its kind, BHEF has become a national model for more than 500 school districts throughout the United States which have patterned their fund-raising programs after the Foundation. BHEF works diligently so that our children can have the kinds of quality programming and exceptional teachers that have been the hallmark of a Beverly Hills public school education.
BHEF is the only Beverly Hills fundraising organization for education that:
- has an endowment to assure continual giving
- sells the naming opportunities for all of the schools
- pays for teachers and staff in addition to programs and materials
- provides parity in the district by donating funds to all of our schools
- is uniquely positioned to bridge neighborhood schools with businesses and civic leaders because of a community-wide commitment
Beverly Hills Schools continue to receive many state and national awards for outstanding and innovative programs in journalism, drama, athletics, architectures, the sciences and arts. Each of the five schools is recognized by the state as a Distinguished School. Despite our outstanding reputation, it is important to let the community know that the public schools in Beverly Hills are not independently wealthy. The Beverly Hills School District receives the same state funds allocation as every other school district in the state. The truth is we need to raise additional funds to maintain and exceed the quality of education all children deserve. Without BHEF, our PTAs, and the Joint Powers land lease Agreement from the City of Beverly Hills, many of the programs that our school district has implemented would need to be immediately eliminated or reduced.
Many millions of dollars have been raised by BHEF and contributed to our school district to enhance revenues needed to fund vital school needs including:
- Teachers and Classroom Aides
- Small Classroom Sizes
- Visual and Performing Arts Programs
- Resource Specialists
- Technology
- Libraries
- Athletic Equipment
- Foreign Language
- High School Architecture
- Co-Curricular Enrichment Opportunities
- Media and KBEV
- Counselors
- Elementary School Summer Enrichment
- Summer Arts Academy
- Ambassador Parent Program
- Debbie Allen Dance Academy at BHUSD
- Middle School Intramural Sports Program
BHEF is a guided by a Board of Directors comprised of parents, community members and PTA presidents from each of the district's five schools. BHEF's leadership draws upon the energies and aspirations of its individual members, while responding to the expressed needs of the Beverly Hills Unified School District and the community. When you support BHEF, you support not only the children in our schools but you become a champion of our entire community. Good public schools increase property values and great public schools increase the value of our city exponentially. Supporting BHEF is good for our kids, good for our schools and good for our city.
Our Vision
The Beverly Hills Education foundation believes that nothing is more important than the education of our children and that we must do whatever we can to assure that our schools, in our world famous city, set the standard for excellence in public education. Beverly Hills has the finest police and fire department in the country. BHEF ensures that our schools are also the best. We work towards schools that are rich in programming, academic challenge, enrichment opportunities, arts and athletics. We want our facilities to shine and for our students to develop critical thinking skills as well as the character required to use these skills in ways that allow them to meet the challenges unique to their generation, challenges that will require creativity and intellect. We want to see all parents, all community leaders and all businesses within our city work together, hand in hand, to assure that our schools are a model of the great equalizer in our nation, public education. All children deserve nothing less than excellence and as guardians of public education, we must help provide for their future, now.
Our Organizational Profile and History
Beverly Hills students are high achievers and have historically taken leadership roles in society. Constant, dependable funding is imperative to assure these future leaders the necessary tools to achieve their full potential. Traditionally, Beverly Hills residents have been eager to invest in the educational system that has given so much to them and their children.
Since its inception in 1978, the Beverly Hills Education Foundation has provided financial support to assist the Beverly Hills Unified School district in achieving excellence in education. The Beverly Hills Education foundation, an outgrowth of the Hawthorne Fund, was formed as a result of the Serrano V. Priest California Supreme Court ruling making it necessary to equalize the revenue across districts in the state and ensure that no district received more funding than any other, regardless of the tax base. Soon after, California voters passed Proposition 13 which shifted school funding from local to state control. The Hawthorne Fund was established by Wallis Annenberg and the Annenberg Foundation to raise funds for Hawthorne Elementary School after these two laws reduced school funding overnight in Beverly Hills. Because of the start differences in the fundraising capabilities of each Beverly Hills School, the Beverly Hills Education Foundation was formed for the purpose of raising funds for all the schools and distributing those funds equitable.
The State of California currently provides $6,512 per student. Our ADA (actual daily attendance) is 96.6% so we receive money based on 5,092 students. The District's expenditures next year are $57,261,761 which divided by 5,092 students is $11,245. The actual costs are $12,289 per student which includes restricted funds that must be accounted for. The remaining funding comes from federal funding ($1,772.48 which is primarily for Special Education), the City of Beverly Hills in the form of a lease agreement, the Joint Powers Agreement, and through BHEF which is the only fundraising organization that can pay for personnel. PTA can pay for things; BHEF can pay for people. The City, the PTA and BHEF make a difference, together. Diminished government support for public education in America has forced communities to form organizations to raise funds to support education in their cities.
Many enrichment programs are funded through the Foundation as well as monies used to keep class size down and maintain teaching positions. These funds are divided among the five Beverly Hills Schools: Beverly Hills High School, Beverly Vista, El Rodeo, Hawthorne, and Horace Mann elementary schools. This money is raised through various fundraising events such as the annual Apple Ball Dinner Dance and Auction, The Apple Harvest Faire, a School Spirit Calendar book, The Beverly Hills Mercedes-Benz Classics for Charity Car Show and various events throughout the year sponsored by local businesses. Additionally, the Foundation sells naming rights to District facilities and provides giving opportunities through endowment funds and annual gift drives.
The Beverly Hills Education Foundation is a 501 (C) 3 non-profit public corporation. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.