Welcome from SEAL’s Executive Director

2023-04-07T10:21:43-07:00

Dear Friends,

It is an exciting time for English learners in the State of California. We have a new Governor who committed $2.4 billion to early childhood and a new State Superintendent who believes in investing in English learners.

Here at SEAL (Sobrato Early Academic Learning) we are embracing the moment to continue putting English learners front and center. I am proud to announce our new nonprofit, independent status. We are deeply grateful to the Sobrato Family Foundation for their support over the past 10 years, and their commitment to our success in the future. The foundation leadership has given us the room to experiment and hone the SEAL model to have an outsized impact on how English Learners learn a new language while retaining their native language. The results speak for themselves: SEAL has reached 50,000 students and trained 1,600 teachers in over 100 elementary schools across 21 school districts, and in over 130 preschool classrooms across 24 preschool local educational agencies throughout the state.

As an independent organization, our mission will stay the same: to put English Learners at the heart of California’s education system. We will grow our work by partnering with more school districts, advocating for state-level changes that focus on English learners’ needs, and supporting implementation of the English Learner Roadmap.

We are thrilled to continue this journey with you. If this is your first introduction to SEAL, welcome — we look forward to partnering with you at this key moment to ensure success for all of our state’s English Learners.

Sincerely,

Anya Hurwitz
Executive Director
SEAL

Welcome from SEAL’s Executive Director2023-04-07T10:21:43-07:00

SEAL Becomes an Independent Nonprofit Organization

2023-04-07T10:24:14-07:00

Project of the Sobrato Family Foundation Continues to Expand Impact Across California

[OAKLAND, Calif. – July 22, 2019] – After 10 years as a project of The Sobrato Family Foundation, SEAL has become an independent nonprofit organization.

“It is an exciting time for English Learners in California,” said SEAL’s executive director, Anya Hurwitz. “With a new Governor committing billions of dollars to early childhood and a new State Superintendent who believes in investing in English Learners, we at SEAL are embracing this moment to continue putting English Learners front and center while we transform what student learning can and should be.”

SEAL’s mission will stay the same: to prepare all English Learners to learn, thrive and lead by placing their needs at the center of classrooms, districts, state-level policy and the research field. As a new organization, SEAL will continue to address English Learner needs at all levels to create long-term systemic changes. The organization will strategically expand to work with more districts alongside preschool local education agencies committed to prioritizing their youngest English Learners and dual-language learners. And, we will advocate for state-level changes that focus on English Learners’ needs, and support implementation of the English Learner Roadmap.

Since launching 10 years ago, SEAL has reached more than 50,000 students and trained more than 1,600 teachers. The model has translated into tangible outcomes for English Learners: An early evaluation of SEAL pilot sites found that SEAL students demonstrated significant gains on language, literacy and cognition measures. In fact, despite starting school with language and academic skills behind their peers, SEAL students were able to catch up or surpass their peers on all measures.

“The Sobrato Family Foundation is pleased with the significant progress SEAL has made since its inception, demonstrating outsized impact on how English Learners learn while emphasizing the value of students’ home language and culture,” said SEAL board chair, John Matthew Sobrato. “We are thrilled to continue our partnership with SEAL at this key moment to ensure success for all of California’s English Learners.”

To learn more about SEAL, its model, and the positive impact it is having in districts and schools across California, visit SEAL.org.

SEAL Becomes an Independent Nonprofit Organization2023-04-07T10:24:14-07:00
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