Latest news with #PriscillaChan
Gizmodo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Gizmodo
Chan Zuckerberg Is Reportedly Killing Funding for Non-Profits Associated With ‘DEI'
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (or CZI) has been quietly suspending grants to nonprofits across California and the country, especially those that might be construed as reflecting support for diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. While CZI claims that it has long planned to move its focus away from social issues and towards the sciences, current and former employees had a different story to tell the San Francisco Standard. In 2015, then-Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, created CZI. The couple pledged to donate 99% of their Meta (then Facebook) shares to the organization, which currently implies a sum of nearly $100 billion. CZI says it has distributed almost $7B in grants over the course of its 10-year history. The organization, whose founding mission was to 'build a more inclusive, just, and healthy future for everyone,' has also given millions of dollars to nonprofits in San Mateo County, where Meta is headquartered. In recent months, however, many of those grants have been suspended. The Standard spoke with Juan Hernandez, the CEO of Creser Capital Fund, which provides loans to Latino entrepreneurs, who learned last month that his CZI grant would not be renewed. And just last week, The Mercury News reported that CZI cut funding for local homelessness and affordable housing groups. The cuts come in the wake of CZI's warning to employees in February that the organization would be winding down its DEI work, both internally and externally. In a message posted to its website, CZI's COO Marc Malandro seemed to speak out of both sides of his mouth, saying that while CZI was still committed to 'ensuring our work serves everyone' and to 'building a workforce that reflects a broad ranges of experiences, thoughts, and opinions,' the organization would be shifting its focus away from political and social advocacy (where it had worked on immigration reform and racial equality); eliminating its Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility team ('given the shifting regulatory and legal landscape'); and discontinuing its 'Diverse Slate' hiring practices, which aimed to ensure that candidates from underrepresented backgrounds were considered for roles. The Standard spoke with current and former CZI employees about the recent changes at the organization, two of which described an internal meeting that included remarks from General Counsel Mark Kim. According to the Standard's reporting, Kim explained that the organization is a 'political target' because of its billionaire co-founders (at least one of whom has done his very best to make friends with the Trump administration) and is simply hoping to avoid litigation. In response to the Standard's reporting, a CZI spokesperson pushed back on the idea that the changes stemmed solely from CZI's desire to avoid being sued, saying that the organization's strategy is 'driven by our science vision to cure, prevent, and manage all disease by the end of this century.' Except, perhaps, the disease of bigotry? Anyway. Additionally, CZI spokesperson assured the Standard that it remained committed to serving the local community, partially through its Community Fund, which has provided $35 million in the last eight years to fund 'local organizations doing essential work throughout San Mateo County.' However, one former grantee told the Standard that she was informed by CZI that she was suddenly 'no longer eligible' to apply for a grant from the fund. Adriana Ayala, who leads the Chicana Latina Foundation, says she was told by a CZI program officer that it was because of her foundation's focus on a targeted population (namely, Latinas). 'In this political climate, targeted populations are frowned upon, or they're seen as DEI,' Ayala told the Standard. The changes at CZI come just months after Zuckerberg's Meta announced that it was ending its fact-checking program on social media and winding down its internal DEI efforts, including the 'Diverse Slate' practices it shared with CZI. The Guardian reported that the changes at Meta caused angst at CZI, with employees asking in a Slack group for managers and executives if CZI 'would 'reaffirm' the organization's values.' At the time, Mark Gundacker, CZI's Head of People, assured employees that CZI's policies and governance remained entirely separate from Meta's, and that 'Meta's changes to its DEI efforts does not impact ours.' He reiterated this point, saying, 'If employees have questions, please reaffirm this for them and we'll continue to do the same whenever the question comes up.'
Daily Mail
08-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Outraged parents make damaging revelation about Mark Zuckerberg's wife after closure of couple's school
Outraged parents of students at a Bay Area school, founded by Mark Zuckerberg 's wife Priscilla Chan, are demanding to know why it will be closing next year. The Primary School, which operates two tuition-free elementary schools a stone's throw away from Meta 's headquarters in Menlo Park, announced in April that the 2025-2026 school year would be its last. The announcement did not offer much in the way of an explanation for why, only telling parents 'more details will come.' Chan, 40, is a pediatrician and much of her day-to-day work involves directing millions of dollars worth of philanthropic contributions through her and her husband's charity, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Chan founded the Primary School through the foundation in 2016, with its mission being to serve low-income families in this very affluent area of California. Parents of the roughly 450 students at the East Palo Alto school, which offers pre-K through sixth grade, are now saying that Chan did not attend the Zoom meeting where they were told it would be shutting down. Reneisha Hunt, who has a three-year-old child at the school, said it was difficult to hear the devastating news 'from the faculty and not [Chan].' 'She was not on the Zoom. She wasn't attending it,' Hunt told KRON 4, adding that her child had been on the waiting list for the Primary School 'since he was in my stomach.' It appears Chan's last publicly known visit to the school was in November 2023, when she was photographed reading a picture book to a Kindergarten class. Kyleigh Whitley, whose son and niece attend the East Palo Alto location, said that the staff members she spoke to seemed confused. 'Since I've heard the news, I've spoken with a couple of different staff members and it was a shock to them,' she said. 'Everyone is really disappointed about it.' Some parents have questioned why there can't be a fundraising effort to save the school, especially because the closure announcement said the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative 'will make a $50M investment over the next few years in the East Palo Alto, Belle Haven, and East Bay communities.' approached the Primary School's board and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative for comment. The Primary School's Board Chair, Jean-Claude Brizard, also did not immediately return a request for comment. Over the next year, the school's board of directors has pledged that some of that $50 million will go toward setting up 529 education savings accounts for the students. These kinds of accounts, typically used for college, can also be used to pay for tuition at public or private K-12 schools, a change brought about by President Donald Trump's 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's investment will also fund 'transition specialists' that will help parents move their kids to new schools in the area. Zuckerberg announced the school's founding in 2015, saying in a Facebook post that he was 'so proud of Priscilla.' 'It's inspiring to see Priscilla grow as an entrepreneur and leader. I'm looking forward to watching with pride as she develops The Primary School into a great resource for our community,' he added. 'The goal is to support families and help children from underserved communities reach their full potential.' The Primary School's impending closure comes as Zuckerberg appears to be on a mission to mend his public image as someone who comes across 'robotic,' something he admitted applies to him in a 2019 interview with NBC News' Lester Holt. The Meta CEO has long been sharing his love for Brazilian jiu-jitsu by posting pictures of himself sparring with people. More recently, he shared what supplements he takes every morning. Amid the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, he lamented the fact that the average American has fewer than three friends while attending a conference this week hosted by tech company Stripe. His solution is to get socially disconnected people to make friends with AI companions. 'I think people are going to want a system that knows them well and that kind of understands them in the way that their feed algorithms do,' Zuckerberg said Tuesday. ''For people who don't have a person who's a therapist, I think everyone will have an AI.'
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Primary School parents demand answers over planned closure
(KRON) — Parents of 450 students attending the Primary School in East Palo Alto are demanding answers on why their school is closing next year. 2 coaches suspended after racist remarks fly at East Bay high school baseball game The Primary School board announced the closure in April. Parents say the announcement came as a surprise and without any explanation. They are asking for more transparency from the Primary School board. Reneisha Hunt's three-year-old is among the hundreds of students at the Primary School. She says that she and other parents learned about the school's closure on Zoom. 'I called my mom after and was like, 'What do I do? Because he's been on the waiting list since he was in my stomach,' says Hunt. 'I think I cut off the Zoom link after that. I was like, 'I'm over it at this point.'' The school was founded in 2016 by Meta founder, Mark Zuckerberg's wife, Priscilla Chan, and funded by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Parents say they're upset Chan hasn't directly reached out to them. 'It was kind of hard for them to hear it from the faculty and not her,' says Hunt. 'She was not on the Zoom. She wasn't attending it.' Kyleigh Whitley's son and niece attend the school. She says even the staff seemed confused. 'Since I've heard the news, I've spoken with a couple of different staff members and it was a shock to them,' says Whitley. 'It was a surprise. Everyone is really disappointed about it.' Carson Cook is the senior manager of strategy and advancement at the Primary School. He says he is also upset but is focused on finishing the last school year strong. 'It's a moment of grief,' says Cook. 'Every time you walk through these doors, there's so much energy, there is so much life. It's a school, right? It's a really joyous place to be.' Hunt says she and other parents feel hopeless in trying to save their school and have no other choice than to move on. 'You guys keep saying 'it's closing, there's nothing to do,' 'there's no way to fundraise to keep it open,' 'there's no alternatives to keep it open and stay afloat'— so it is what it is, let it go,' says Hunt. The Primary School board has a 529 education savings plan for all students that will support future learning — meaning they will be working with parents over the course of the year to set up the accounts so their children can use the money for education. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
San Francisco Chronicle
29-04-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
Mark Zuckerberg is worth billions. Why is his nonprofit school closing due to lack of funding?
Two of the richest people in the world made a slew of promises to low-income families when they opened a nonprofit school in East Palo Alto in 2016. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his pediatrician wife Priscilla Chan vowed that The Primary School would give their children a free education, with a long list of extras on top to overcome the odds the families faced. No one thought the promises had an expiration date. Last week, hundreds of families learned The Primary School would close at the end of the 2025-2026 academic year. Then they were told why: There wasn't enough money to keep it open. Zuckerberg and Chan, worth an estimated $200 billion combined, were walking away. The news shook the families of the 443 students attending The Primary School in East Palo Alto, who tried to make sense of it. A week later, they were still waiting for a solid explanation. The story line that money ran out didn't sound right to many parents and observers, and alternatives quickly emerged, such as that the couple had shifted priorities away from projects focused on real people to focus almost exclusively on artificial intelligence, while also eliminating all association with diversity, equity and inclusion. "They said there isn't enough money to keep the school open, but I don't believe it," said Spanish-speaking parent Estrella Perez. "When the school opened, they were here, but now that the school is closing, they don't want to show up.' School officials did not respond to the Chronicle's requests to provide additional information, and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative did not respond to requests for comment. The Primary School board chair Jean-Claude Brizard sent a brief text message: 'I don't think there's anything else to be said." Preschool parent Brooke Koka, who is also a Primary School board member, said the near unanimous decision to close the school happened at a recent board meeting following a presentation on the school's financial challenges. The school had been struggling financially for a couple of years, with conversations about cuts or reducing staffing, she said. The annual cost of the school, which includes a smaller preschool site in San Leandro with just over 100 children, was $12.4 million in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the most recent numbers available from federal filings. That's about $28,000 per student, which is just over the $25,000 budgeted per student in San Francisco Unified, with all local, state and federal funding included. Financial contributions to the school, which is operated as a nonprofit, dropped significantly from 2022 to 2023, tax filings show. The Primary School brought in nearly $8 million in contributions in 2022. In 2023, the school brought in just over $3.7 million, tax filings show. The filings do not show the specific sources of the contributions. Students had access not only to academics, but also medical, dental and mental health care, to address trauma, asthma, developmental delays, homelessness or other barriers to learning. But one former administrator said those add-ons did not produce immediate academic gains as hoped, in part because of the pandemic. Koka said her understanding was that the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the nonprofit set up by the couple to fund its philanthropic endeavors, had planned to fund the school only for a certain amount of time and that the expectation was always that the school would find other public or private funding to support it long term. But those partnerships never materialized, she said, perhaps due to a lack of fundraising or visibility. 'We've just been slowly heading towards this, and I guess trying to hang on for some super person to come in and just pick up all of that slack,' Koka said. 'And it just never got there.' Koka, whose daughter has autism, said the school offers a supportive model for students with disabilities. She said many parents will struggle to navigate special education services in the public school system with fewer resources. 'Now families are going to have to figure it out on their own again,' Koka said. Longtime education philanthropists and nonprofit leaders questioned the idea of a new school becoming financially viable and self-sufficient on donations or other support in less than a decade while building out the leadership, curriculum and structure from scratch. 'Great schools take time. Progress takes time,' said Phil Halperin, who has spent nearly three decades in education philanthropy as president of the Silver Giving Foundation. 'And it's our responsibility to be in there for the long haul.' Ted Lempert, president of Children Now, an education policy and advocacy nonprofit, echoed the idea that education is complicated, but that shouldn't deter billionaires from getting involved. 'We need all hands on deck to help kids,' he said. 'We need that support if it's done well and people stick with it. The last thing you want is philanthropy to say, 'it's too messy, it's too controversial and we'll just go elsewhere.'' Lempert said the decision to close the school lacked sufficient transparency and that families deserved a fuller explanation of what happened. 'Yes, education is hard,' he said. 'What's wrong and upsetting is when you're not there for the long term —– or you say here's the answer and suddenly shift gears.' Katherine Carter, a former administrator at The Primary School, said the school board — and many faculty members — were not satisfied with the academic outcomes. The school saw significant gains in the lowest test scores, she said, but students struggled to reach proficient or above-proficient levels. 'There was a mistaken belief that the wraparound programming … would show up in dramatic test scores,' she said. Carter said COVID-19 shutdowns and high principal turnover at The Primary School caused disruption in student learning. 'It takes a long time when you have an innovative school model,' Carter said. 'It takes three to five years of stable leadership. We were never able to get that.' Carter said The Primary School attempted to partner with Hayward Unified School District to expand the San Leandro preschool into an elementary school, but it was called off as the district closed two schools amid a budget shortfall and declining enrollment. It's unclear why the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative wouldn't continue to financially support the school or why it would expect a startup education initiative to be financially independent and academically successful while it's still growing. The East Palo Alto school, which grew by a grade each year, planned to serve up to 700 preschool through eighth grade students at full buildout, which was expected to be next year. This was not Zuckerberg's first foray into education reform. In 2010, he gave $100 million to the Newark, N.J., public schools to overhaul the system, closing low-performing schools and welcoming charters. Critics said the effort yielded mixed results and created turmoil. Zuckerberg later admitted he learned hard lessons from the experiment. His later efforts through the initiative included funding existing nonprofit education programs and research. But when Chan and Zuckerberg launched The Primary School they hoped it would be a success, with the long-term goal of opening three to five sites across the Bay Area with public schools replicating the model across the country, officials said early on. Chan, in an October 2016 video interview, , said the plan was to bring together health and education 'to work together to improve the lives of the kids.' 'That's our vision of what we can hopefully accomplish in the decades to come,' she said. Less than nine years later, Chan was in tears while on a conference call with school staff and parent leaders speaking about the closure. 'She was sad,' preschool parent Koka said. 'I know she had a lot of passion for this project.' Koka couldn't remember 'word for word' what Chan said. 'I just remember her apologizing to the families who were on the call, saying she was sorry,' Koka added. 'This is not what she expected to happen.' While the announcement has left families devastated, the decision reflects Zuckerberg and Chan's shift in recent years in their philanthropic focus. The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative has been moving away from funding social science research, school-based programs or hands-on work, much of it focused on diversity, race and equity issues. Grant recipients in the last few years have included the Black Teacher Collaborative, the Equity Initiative, Black Voices for Black Justice Fund and the Liber Institute, which supports Indigenous communities. The initiative's education team has started focusing more on technology, specifically artificial intelligence, to fuel classroom learning. In January, Zuckerberg — who has worked to develop closer ties with President Donald Trump — announced Meta, Facebook's parent company, would eliminate DEI. His and Chan's initiative followed suit in February. By March, there appeared to be only one DEI light left on in the Zuckerberg empire: The Primary School. The school had deep roots in diversity, equity and inclusion, vowing to teach about diverse cultures and anti-racism while helping students do social justice work and providing opportunities for families to discuss racism. The East Palo Alto school is primarily children of color with 61% of its students identifying as Latino, 7% as Black, 11% as multiracial, 7% as Pacific Islander, 1% as Asian American, and 13% not provided. In addition, a quarter of students qualify for special education services and another third receive other specialized support — meaning nearly 60% have significant needs. Parent Margarita Perez said she enrolled her daughter at the school when she was six months pregnant to ensure they both received support. Her daughter, who is now a first grader, has two teachers in her classroom with a parent coach available for extra support. Then there is dental care, mental health counseling, speech therapy and more. It's the kind of education and support that experts say is needed to bring some equity between the children in East Palo Alto, where the average median household income is $105,000 and its neighbor Palo Alto, where the average median income is $220,408. The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative said it will invest $50 million over five years in East Palo Alto, Belle Haven and the East Bay to help families navigate the transition through education savings accounts, early childhood programs and family engagement services. Families were told they would receive money to help them find another school: $10,000 for each K-8 student, $2,500 for each preschooler and $1,000 for each child under 3. Perez said that money is an attempt to placate parents. She doesn't believe that Zuckerberg and Chan don't have enough money to keep the school open. She wondered whether Zuckerberg's connection to the Trump administration influenced the decision to shutter the school. "I'm disappointed because they made promises,' she said. 'And now they're leaving.'
Time of India
25-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Mark Zuckkerberg's wife Priscilla Chan-funded free Silicon Valley School to shut down next year
The Primary School , a no-cost private institution in the Bay Area co-founded by Priscilla Chan , wife of Facebook parent Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg , will reportedly cease operations following the 2025-2026 academic year, concluding roughly ten years of service to 543 students. First reported by Bloomberg, the impending closure was disclosed in a statement posted on the school's website recently. In a move aimed at preserving its legacy, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), the billionaire couple's philanthropic arm, has committed $50 million to invest in the communities the school serves -— specifically East Palo Alto, Belle Haven, and the East Bay region near San Francisco -- over the subsequent few years. What the note on the school's website says "This was a very difficult decision, and we are committed to ensuring a thoughtful and supportive transition for students and families over the next year," the online statement conveyed. Carson Cook, a spokesperson for The Primary School, stated there would be no further comment beyond the official announcement. Pediatrician Priscilla Chan, 40, co-established The Primary School in 2016, implementing an "integrated health and education model" designed to support families and children from birth through high school, according to the organization's tax filings. The school's inaugural middle school cohort commenced in 2023. The most recent tax documentation indicates that over 95% of The Primary School's students in East Palo Alto identify as under-represented minorities. The filing also revealed the nonprofit held assets exceeding $30 million as of the end of June 2023. Mark Zuckerberg's Education Ventures The Primary School is among several educational endeavors recently initiated by prominent billionaires. Elon Musk , Jeff Bezos, and Larry Ellison have all established schools in recent years. Musk's nonprofit, the Musk Foundation, has contributed $237 million to his technology-focused primary and secondary school in Austin, named Ad Astra, with future aspirations for a university. Ad Astra collaborates with the same entity that assisted Ellison in establishing his Hala Kahiki Montessori school in Lanai, Hawaii, an island largely owned by the Oracle co-founder. founder Bezos has created a network of Montessori-inspired preschools catering to children in underserved communities. The closure of The Primary School coincides with significant strategic shifts within Zuckerberg's Meta Platforms Inc. as the 40-year-old founder appears to be aligning his business interests more closely with the Trump administration. Recent appointments to Meta's board include longtime Trump allies Dana White, CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship, and Dina Powell McCormick, who served as Trump's deputy national security adviser during his first term. Furthermore, Zuckerberg has appointed a Republican strategist as chief of global affairs, eliminated Meta's US fact-checking program, rolled back the company's hate-speech policies, and discontinued key diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at both Meta and CZI. This contrasts with The Primary School's documented commitment to diversity, which included conducting a diversity audit in June 2020 following the Black Lives Matter protests and forming a DEI task force in the fall of that year.
