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Together, MBEF and PTA Fuel Quality Education For Our Local Schools
If you’re new to Meadows, we welcome you into an environment of supportive
parents and educators working together to provide a top-notch education for
kids. Our district ranks third highest among all unified districts in the state.
Public education succeeds in Manhattan Beach because our community places strong
value on quality schools and works together to make them a reality.
At Meadows Elementary, we have two organizations that each play a vital role in
the outstanding education our kids receive. One is Meadows own PTA. The other is
the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation (MBEF).
What is MBEF?
28 years ago, a proactive group of Manhattan Beach parents banded together and
raised $20,000 to help our district alleviate inadequate state funding for basic
art and music programs. Today, MBEF has grown to become a critical source of
support for all levels of education from basic education to enrichment programs.
Through the generosity of the family and community donors during the last school
year, MBEF supports MBUSD
this year with $4.6 million dollars in grants to bridge the gap between what the state
funds and what it actually costs to provide a quality education. Our students
at Meadows benefit directly from these grants through our small class sizes (1
in 5 elementary school teachers are funded by MBEF today), our science
specialist, our librarians and computer specialists, reading enrichment programs
and music teachers. For a list of the grants provided throughout the district,
visit
www.mbef.org.
What is PTA?
Each of the seven school sites in Manhattan Beach has a PTA to support the
specific needs of its own individual campus. Each school’s PTA has its own Board
of Directors that raises and spends funds in the same school year to pay for
things like classroom supplies, computers for the computer lab, the test tubes,
beakers and all materials for the science lab, new books for the library, and
even the paper your child’s homework is printed on. The PTA also funds campus
improvements and programs such as Growing Great, fine art and cultural arts. For
a complete list of PTA funded activities and materials, please visit the PTA
Membership page of the Meadows web site,
(http://www.meadowsschool.org/membership.aspx).
How are PTA and MBEF different?
MBEF’s focus is on funding the people needed to teach important programs at
school sites district-wide. While PTA bylaws require funds to be raised and
spent in the same school year, MBEF raises funds a year in advance so that its
grants can be included in MBUSD’s budget planning to pay for teachers.
While we can thank MBEF for our librarians, PTA pays for our library books.
Similarly, MBEF pays computer specialists to teach kids visiting our computer
lab and PTA buys the lab’s computers and software. Therefore, despite their
different roles, both MBEF and PTA work together to fund critical programs our
schools wouldn’t otherwise have.
Why can’t our tax dollars fund a quality education for our kids?
California’s school financing system is vastly different—and far more
complex—than other states’ systems. Unlike other states, California school
districts don’t keep local property taxes to pay for schools. To create parity
among school districts, property taxes go to Sacramento. They are redistributed
to the school districts according to complex formulas. So regardless of the
taxes we pay in our area, only 20% comes back to our schools, and our per-pupil
funding is about the same or even less than other districts. Unfortunately,
California ranks among the lowest in the nation on per-pupil funding for public
schools. The reality is that private funding for our public schools is essential
for quality schools!
A minimum private donation (compared to private school tuition) from every
family will supplement inadequate State funding and will ensure we continue to
have outstanding PUBLIC schools in Manhattan Beach! It takes everyone’s support
to ensure that our kids continue to the quality education they deserve. BETTER
SCHOOLS. BRIGHTER FUTURE.
Please contact your Meadows Site Reps with any questions you may have.
Mailing Address:
Manhattan Beach Education Foundation
PO Box 1110
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
Physical address:
325 S. Peck Avenue
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Phone: 303-3342
Fax: 303-3828
Website: www.mbef.org