The Irvine Company presented IUSD with a check for $2 million as part of the Excellence in Education Enrichment Fund grant, during the first Board of Education Meeting of 2021. The Excellence in Education Enrichment Fund supports art, music and science education for IUSD students in grades four through six.
This is the 15th installment of the Irvine Company’s $45 million commitment to IUSD students, totaling $30 million to date. Since 2006, the Excellence in Education Enrichment Fund, established by this funding commitment, has benefited more than 100,000 elementary students with focused and immersive arts, music and science classes.
During the presentation, the Board of Education thanked Mr. Donald Bren and the Irvine Company for their unprecedented commitment to IUSD students and families. Board of Education President Paul Bokota said, “The Excellence in Education Enrichment Fund has and continues to make a difference if the lives of current and former students by supporting robust and foundational art, music and science education.”
Board Members also noted that these funds have been particularly invaluable during the pandemic. By utilizing dedicated specialty teachers, funded in part by this grant, IUSD has created smaller groups for in-person and hybrid instruction. Additionally, investments in classroom technologies and innovative educational platforms have enabled students to collaborate and perform complex symphonies and science labs virtually with fellow students.
Jeffrey Davis, Vice President for the Irvine Company, presented this year’s check to the IUSD Board of Education. During his remarks, Davis said, "Education has always been at the core of our planning efforts in Irvine and today’s contribution continues our Company’s decades-long partnership with IUSD, students and families to support enrichment programs in science, art and music. These programs have helped create one of the highest performing districts in California.”
The Excellence in Education Enrichment Fund pays for specialists to work in IUSD’s fourth through sixth-grade classrooms. Students receive two 60-minute science lessons per week, two 40-minute music lessons per week and six hour-long art lessons per year, all taught by highly qualified instructors.
The program has been extremely popular in IUSD, enabling schools to preserve and continue this essential programming.
Watch a brief video presentation from the Irvine Company: https://vimeo.com/500627785/d3bc784222
To view the 2020-21 Excellence in Education Enrichment Fund Annual Report, click here.