ForWords, established in 2007, provided literacy programs for low-income, under-served students in the greater San Francisco Bay Area. In 2023, the Board of ForWords voted to dissolve ForWords Literacy Lab as a 501c3 charitable organization and transfer its financial assets to the Marin Community Foundation (MCF) through a donor advised fund (DAF) agreement. Under the umbrella of MCF, a ForWords Fund Committee established by the ForWords Board of Directors will decide which Marin County nonprofit organizations will be awarded grants from ForWords’ remaining funds and interest accrued in the ForWords Fund account. This will ensure that the ForWords mission will continue, and their constituencies will be served through the work of other like-minded organizations.
The ForWords Fund completed its first round of funding with two designated grantees whose mission aligns with that of ForWords Literacy Lab. One grant was given to Marin Shakespeare Company to develop a program in collaboration with the 9th grade cohort at Next Generation Scholars. These students, working with a Teaching Artist and a NGS Instructor, studied, discussed, read, and wrote about problematic issues in their community. They wrote and performed three short plays that highlighted issues of racism, bullying, and systematic violence.
The second grant was given to Huckleberry Youth Programs in San Rafael. The funding supported a writing and publication program for Newcomers, a summer writing series for rising Seniors to complete their college essays, and a major college trip for 25 rising seniors to Southern California.
The ForWords Fund will continue to support these programs in a new round of funding grants as well as consider new programs that apply for funding.
ForWords Fund Committee Members: Gail Siegel (ForWords Founder); Larry Siegel (ForWords Founder), JD; Elisabeth Siegel Marshall (ForWords Founder); Natalie Levine, David Nelson, JD; Daniel Sarna, PhD; Cheryl Ruby, PhD (1944-2024)
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