Kindergarten to College Program

About this grant

San Francisco’s Kindergarten to College Program is the first universal and automatic children’s college savings program in the country. Since the 2011 launch, the City Treasurer’s office has opened savings accounts for over 18,000 students in 74 elementary schools. Program administrators have set a goal of engaging 25 percent of all public school elementary students in active savings by 2017. To achieve this goal, the City and County of San Francisco will focus on expanded outreach strategies and family engagement activities. Support from the Foundation will enable the city to redesign program marketing materials and develop new dissemination strategies; make better use of social media and other technology-based communication tools; and design and implement strategies to increase the engagement of parents, teachers, and principals in the program. The San Francisco United School District is on the leading edge of the demographic trends taking hold in the United States — the majority of public school children come from minority families, including 38 percent Asian, 26 percent Hispanic/Latino, 13 percent white, and 8 percent African American. In addition, approximately 61 percent of students in the district are enrolled in the National School Lunch Program.