Circle the Schools – A 10-Year Retrospective
Ten years ago, in partnership with the late Mayor Ed Lee and sf.citi, the San Francisco Education Fund launched Circle the Schools (CTS) to bring the city's business and tech community closer to its public schools. What began in the 2014-15 school year as a simple idea - to “circle” a school with consistent corporate support - has since grown into a thriving network of complex, reciprocal partnerships across San Francisco.
Over the past decade, Circle the Schools has impacted more than 114,000 students, logged over 57,000 volunteer hours, and contributed $2.6 million in resources to San Francisco public schools. Through activities like college application support, campus beautification projects, office visits, and classroom read-alouds, corporate volunteers have helped make school a more vibrant, connected, and opportunity-rich place for thousands of students. Each partnership is unique, shaped by the individual needs and priorities of each school and the interests and expertise of its partner company.
Celebrating a Decade of Partnership
As we celebrate this milestone, we're honored to recognize the companies that have been with us since the beginning. Together, these seven longtime partners - Dodge & Cox, Dropbox, Deloitte, Hanson Bridgett, NextRoll, Salesforce, and Williams-Sonoma, Inc. - have helped shape what Circle the Schools is today.
Together, these companies account for nearly 37,000, or 66% of all volunteer hours and resource contributions since the program began, a testament to their sustained commitment to San Francisco's public schools. Their partnerships have evolved alongside the schools themselves - adapting to changing needs, celebrating milestones, and showing up year after year. Their decade of partnership demonstrates how sustained corporate engagement drives long-term impact for San Francisco students and educators, and examples of what's possible when local businesses invest in the communities where they live and work.
Our partnership with Circle the Schools has been profoundly meaningful and highly impactful for our entire Roller [NextRoll] population. For many, including me, this engagement is a highlight of their career experience. The program fosters deep employee engagement, reinforces our company value of '...doing right by the community,' and allows our employees to directly contribute to building a more equitable educational landscape for the next generation of leaders in our community.”
- Amy LeBold, Chief People Officer, NextRoll
As a parent of SFUSD students, I know firsthand how resource-constrained our public schools can be, and I'm continually inspired by how the SF Ed Fund's Circle the Schools program has strengthened relationships between companies and schools over the years. Dropbox's partnership with Circle the Schools dates back to 2015, and throughout that time we've seen how meaningful connections with local San Francisco public schools can positively shape both our community and our employees. For many of our San Francisco-based employees, this work is more than volunteering; it's an opportunity to show up for our neighbors, build lasting relationships, and grow together as a community.”
- Tina Lee, Head of Social Impact & Sustainability, Dropbox
Welcoming Our Newest Partners
We're equally excited to welcome three new partners who joined our Circle the Schools network this year:
- Canva
- Anysphere
These companies are already bringing fresh energy, creativity, and expertise to SF Ed Fund Priority Schools, especially as we explore new ways to connect students with AI and other technologies shaping their futures.
Gratitude for Current Partners
Beyond our founding partners, Circle the Schools continues to thrive thanks to the dedication of our current corporate partners who are bringing new ideas, energy, and expertise into San Francisco public schools.
We're grateful to Amazon, Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Cisco, Waymo, Snap Inc., Turn/River, and PagerDuty for their active engagement this year through Back-to-School Setup, Computer Science Education Week, career exploration days, and school beautifications that expand opportunities for students and support educators across San Francisco.
These partnerships highlight the continued impact and evolution of Circle the Schools, showing how meaningful collaboration can grow and adapt to serve students year after year.
We look forward to building on this momentum and welcoming new partners in the year ahead as we continue expanding opportunities for San Francisco students.
Celebrating Exceptional Partners
We also want to recognize companies that are setting a high bar for what corporate philanthropy can look like in San Francisco. Adobe is a shining example of a company that deeply invests in the communities where its employees live and work. Through its holistic approach to social impact, Adobe provides unrestricted grants to nonprofits aligned with its priorities, Board Service Grants that amplify leadership within the nonprofit sector, sponsorship of key mission-aligned events, and paid employee volunteer hours that empower staff to give back. Adobe's commitment to equitable access, education, and opportunity embodies the spirit of what Circle the Schools stands for.
Cisco is another highly committed Circle the Schools partner, providing both hands-on volunteer support and meaningful in-kind resources to Priority Schools. They've donated classroom monitors, supported read-alouds, Back-to-School setup, Teacher Appreciation Week, and Hour of Code activities. Cisco has also created impactful learning experiences, including an all-Spanish-speaking career panel and office visit for Thurgood Marshall High School's native Spanish-speaking students. Their partnership reflects a deep dedication to expanding opportunity across San Francisco's public schools.
Looking Ahead: Innovation and Impact
Circle the Schools continues to evolve with the needs of our schools and our city. One exciting new direction is our integration of artificial intelligence into school partnerships. During Computer Science Education Week last December, we launched our first-ever high school AI workshop, introducing students to emerging tools and potential career paths in tech. Initiatives like this help students see that innovation isn't just something happening in Silicon Valley - it's happening in their own classrooms. The SF Ed Fund is gearing up for another year of CS Week (Dec. 8-12) -- get involved here.
San Francisco is in a moment of renewal as a city rediscovering its energy, creativity, and sense of possibility. As local companies continue to thrive, there's never been a more important time to give back to the community that makes this innovation possible. Many are deepening their social impact by supporting nonprofits through unrestricted funding, board service, event sponsorship, and paid volunteer time. Corporate volunteering in our public schools is a uniquely powerful way to invest in San Francisco's future—helping students see their own potential and strengthening the very foundation of our democracy.
For ten years, Circle the Schools has proven that when companies and communities work together, students thrive. As we look to the next decade, we invite more local businesses to join us in supporting the next generation of innovators, thinkers, and leaders, right here in San Francisco.
If interested in learning more and/or getting involved, please reach out to circletheschools@sfedfund.org.
