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2024 Bright Spots: Unlocking Evidence

Here, we highlight stories of how our funding helped unlock evidence in 2024 to advance field knowledge or validate program models in the areas of high-impact tutoring and curriculum-based professional learning.

Spotlight on Innovation: Reflections on GenAI Investments and Trends in Education

Over the last two years, we’ve made over $13 million in commitments to organizations building, scaling, or learning about AI-powered interventions in Pre-K-12 education. To inform how we pursue genAI investments in 2025 and beyond, we analyzed our grantmaking efforts and trends we’re seeing in the broader landscape. Jon Sotsky shares five reflections from this exercise focused on the progress, challenges, and dynamics we’re observing through the efforts of our grantees and others in the field.

Spotlight On Evidence: Investing in Innovative Tutoring Approaches To Boost Student Achievement

Research points to the potential value of high-impact tutoring for supporting learning recovery at scale, but key challenges remain. Meghan McCormick examines the current body of evidence on the impact of hybrid, virtual, and AI-fueled tutoring models, and how these models are poised to reduce costs, strengthen the tutoring workforce, and more effectively allocate tutoring supports.

Now Available: 2023 Grantmaking & Impact Report

In 2023, Overdeck Family Foundation disbursed $53.5 million to almost 100 grantee organizations, collectively reaching over 66 million children, 3.9 million families, and 500,000 educators nationwide. Our 2023 Grantmaking & Impact Report highlights what our grantmaking accomplished and uplifts the successes of the organizations we fund.

2023 End-of-Year Research Update

We are committed to promoting transparent research practices by lifting up timely findings. Here, we share the results of 15 grantee research efforts that concluded at the end of this year.

Educator works with two students

Perspectives: The Potential of High-Impact Tutoring

It's clear that the status quo classroom instruction is failing to meet the needs of students. Pete Lavorini points to the continued potential of high-impact tutoring to support both students’ academic achievement and social-emotional needs at this critical time in education.

Q3 2023 Funding Announcement

In Q3 2023, our foundation awarded 46 grants totaling over $19 million. Of these, two were to organizations new to our foundation, eight were renewals, 16 were disbursements for ongoing pledges, and 20 covered additional grantee supports, membership fees, and convenings. Here, we highlight just some of the organizations we’re proud to support in the third quarter.

10 Lessons From 10 Years

Anu Malipatil, Vice President, Education, shares her lessons learned with the philanthropic sector, inspired by a decade of experience leading Overdeck Family Foundation.

Students work on computers with teacher support

When It Comes To Purchasing EdTech Solutions, Evidence-Based Decision-Making Is More Important Than Ever

In today’s K-12 education market, there is strong demand for technology-fueled solutions to close achievement gaps, but little to no guidance for educators on making decisions based on evidence of impact. Melanie Dukes and Lina Eroh outline the critical role philanthropy can play in strengthening evidence-based decision-making for edtech solutions, ultimately leading to better student outcomes.