ecodev brochure
DESCRIPTION
GMC's EcoSystem Development Initiative BrochureTRANSCRIPT
G r a y M a t t e r s C a p i t a l
F O U N D A T I O N
Foundation Staff
Genia Topple, Executive Director
Molly McMahon, Program Officer
Erika Norwood, Communications & Program Associate
Aditya Kumar, Program Manager
Sarayu Natarajan, Program Manager
Audrey Shoemaker, Grants & Program Administrator
T O L E A R N M O R E A B O U T O U R P R O G R A M S P L E A S E V I S I T
W W W . G R A Y M A T T E R S C A P . C O M
Fax Ph 678.365.4752 678.365.4700
2 2 0 0 C E N T U R Y P K W Y S U I T E 1 0 0 | A T L A N T A , G A 3 0 3 4 5
If
Ed Educate
Influence
Gl Global
C Ic Collaborate Co Su
Sustainable
Qu
Ac Access
Pa Partnership
Af Affordable
Underserved Un
In Invest
Incubate
Quality
Gray Matters Capital Foundation
Affordable Private School Initiative
Im Impact
I M P R O V I N G T H E
W E L L B E I N G O F
T H E W O R L D S
U N D E R S E R V E D
C O M M U N I T I E S
T H R O U G H
P A R T N E R S H I P S &
I M P A C T
I N V E S T I N G
Ec Ecosystem
Quality. Transparency. Partnership. Sustainability.
T O L E A R N M O R E A B O U T O U R P R O G R A M S P L E A S E V I S I T W W W . G R A Y M A T T E R S C A P . C O M
GMC aims to expand our impact in the education sector, capitalizing on our experience
in India and raising awareness among other stakeholders to build knowledge
and best practices globally.
Quality Teaching & Learning Building Awareness & Expanding Impact
Research has shown that English fluency
offers increased job opportunities and
higher wages. APS parents want their
children to learn English, yet research in
the Indian market shows that teachers
have a low level of English language
knowledge. In partnership with Pratham
India, the Foundation sponsored an
English Language Training Program for
teachers that aims to enhance English
speaking, reading comprehension, and
writing skills among children in
Hyderabad.
In Spring 2009, GMC partnered with Naandi
Foundation to impact learning through
student assessment and teacher training.
These interventions will reveal the areas in
which students need the most improvement
and allow teachers to address the issues. This
school development approach will help create
student achievement standards, maximize
learning outcomes, and enable schools to
develop effective improvement plans.
Pratham Engl ish Tra in ing Program
GMC formed the School Finance Facility (SFF) to assist financial
institutions explore and expand lending to APSs. Over the long
term, GMC envisions a financial vehicle capable of attracting
private investor capital that can drive down funding costs for
school operators. The SFF also creates a powerful platform
from which stakeholders can begin to address APS financing
needs and develop better industry, market and school
performance information.
School F inance Fac i l i ty
The foundation is supporting the development of a
multi‐stakeholder website dedicated to the APS community,
where organizations and individuals working within the industry
can share research, top initiatives and local industry knowledge.
We seek to encourage global collaboration and build awareness
around the APS sector to increase the level of information
available and begin to build best practices within the sector.
Enterpr is ingSchools .com
Naandi School Improvement Pro ject
Affordable Private School Initiative
The Foundation partners with other industry leaders to develop
performance standards using simple and sustainable systems to monitor and benchmark quality and
engage parents and school leaders in assessing student learning.
Research & Infrastructure Development
By developing a solid industry infrastructure, which will support
school growth and leadership, we hope to attract partners and resources to the industry and drastically improve learning
outcomes.
In an effort to make information readily available and
transparent in the APS education sector, GMC began the
development of a school rating system in collaboration
with M‐CRIL, to evaluate a school’s offerings and assess
the additional academic services schools provide to
advance student achievement. Our goal is to make the
system an industry standard which will encourage APS to
strive towards a top rating score and create an
environment in which school owners can freely share
their data for benchmarking purposes.
School Rat ings Pro jec t
Market Research GMC has commissioned several case studies to research
the current offerings of APS in developing countries
including India, Kenya, Ghana, Peru, Ecuador, and the
Dominican Republic. These studies examine the market
demand and support organizations that contribute to the
sector’s growth and development, as well as the legal and
social environments surrounding the sector. From these
studies, we hope to determine the biggest global
challenges for APS and develop programs to address the
issues.
A f f o r d a b l e P r i v a t e S c h o o l s ( A P S s )
a r e s o c i a l e n t e r p r i s e s t h a t o f f e r
q u a l i t y e d u c a t i o n u s i n g a
s u s t a i n a b l e a n d e f f i c i e n t
b u s i n e s s m o d e l . A P S s e x i s t
t h r o u g h o u t t h e d e v e l o p i n g wo r l d
a n d s e r v e m i l l i o n s o f c h i l d r e n
l i v i n g i n s o m e o f t h e mo s t
d i f f i c u l t c o n d i t i o n s .
Gray Matters Capital Foundation (GMC), the charitable arm of
Gray Ghost Ventures, believes that access to quality education
can provide new opportunities and significantly improve lives. In
2008, GMC launched the Ecosystem Development Program and
began focusing on supporting Affordable Private Schools (APSs)
and the ecosystem around them. The Foundation began working
in India, where the government faces difficult challenges in
running the public school system, leaving a large number of
children illiterate and uneducated.
By developing and co‐creating programs with local partners, we
aim to increase school offerings and ensure children receive a
quality education. We work with schools to provide the tools
and resources needed to offer an effective education
environment while establishing industry standards to ensure
transparency and accountability to stakeholders. We will use
the lessons learned in India, and expand our efforts to impact
the APS sector in other developing countries.