Together we will soon gather with our families and loved ones around the Thanksgiving table to express our gratitude. This is one of my favorite holidays, a time to spread warmth and gratefulness. This is also a popular time of year for families to decide on how they want to give thanks to their community and discuss ways that they can give back through volunteering and making financial contributions. 

At Gulf Coast Community Foundation, we want to inspire you to have these conversations with your loved ones around the Thanksgiving table this year. We encourage you to discuss giving back to your community in meaningful ways and finding out how your family can help. 

So, where do you start?

Here are a couple of suggestions. You could create a family mission statement that serves as the backbone of your charitable giving, thinking about why you want to give and what defines success when it comes to giving. Or you could simply ask your family around the Thanksgiving table, how are we currently giving back or serving our community? What are we passionate about supporting in the community? What causes are most important to us? Who needs our help most?

At Gulf Coast, we can assist you in achieving your philanthropic goals, helping you create a charitable giving plan or consider tax-savvy ways to make your giving go further. Yearend is the perfect time to embark on supporting the causes that mean the most to you, and our Philanthropy team is ready to help you create your charitable plan to give back in meaningful ways. You can learn more about yearend giving through Gulf Coast here. Together we can do more.

A community foundation does two things – it inspires philanthropy and creates meaningful impact. Gulf Coast is uniquely positioned to move the needle on our region’s most pressing needs through our data-driven initiatives and projects. We take innovative approaches and invest in scalable solutions that lead to regional transformation. By becoming a philanthropic partner with Gulf Coast, you can be a part of this powerful impact. 

I hope you have a joyous Thanksgiving. 

Phillip P. Lanham is President and CEO of Gulf Coast Community Foundation. 

Photo courtesy Camp Mariposa, Jewish Family & Children Services.

In business, data is extremely important to making effective decisions of all kinds and increase growth. Data with both good and bad numbers are vital to identify what is working and what is not. In the past, the Superintendents of Schools in Sarasota after Lori White retired in 2017 would primarily focus on the good data, breeze through the bad data and not really acknowledge problems, let alone develop solutions.

It is a new day in Sarasota County, with a new Superintendent who has vocally expressed that this will be a data-driven district with goals based upon results. It is a great practice and keeps traditional public schools competitive with charter schools and the growing population of private schools. 

The Superintendent has not even been on the job for 100 days, but his proposed annual evaluation tool articulates the objectives based upon key performance indicators and measurable goals.

In his first year, this academic year, while he gets his feet under him and gets to know the district, he has some key objectives to start using data to improve academic outcomes: 

• Develop a system of monitoring school-based instructional practice to improve student achievement.

• Develop a revised strategic plan that aligns priorities to enhance academic outcomes.
• Implement a revised organizational structure to align support for increased student achievement.

In his second and third year, the superintendent is expected to have some measurable results based upon key performance indicators:

• Improve the overall district ranking as calculated by total points earned within the state accountability system.
• Increase third grade reading proficiency or ranking.
• Increase overall grades 3-10 reading proficiency percentage or ranking.
• Increase overall math proficiency percentage or ranking.
• Increase reading lower quartile growth percentage or ranking as compared to school year 21-22.
• Increase math lower quartile growth percentage or ranking as compared to school year 21-22.

This is a great start, and the fact he proposes to make himself responsible for these objectives sends a message to the rest of the district, from the Landings to the schools, that we will use data to determine our focus and measure how we are doing. It mandates a positive movement and improvement in academics.

These unifying objectives are important to become a serious competitor for the number one school district in Florida. Improvement in these areas will be instrumental in getting us there. The Argus Foundation has been a staunch supporter of publicly examining our schools’ data. We are encouraged by the new data-direction of the School District led by new Superintendent Terrence Connor. We are excited to see the results. 

Christine Robinson is Executive Director of The Argus Foundation. 

Image courtesy Pixabay.