Single mother Ana Alfaro made the difficult decision to leave her native Guatemala with her son, Jose, with the hope of a better life for her small family. The transition proved traumatic for Jose; this was coupled with a speech impediment that led to the monolingual Spanish-speaking adolescent having a hard time fitting in with fellow students […]

Interview with Miguel A. Gamiño Jr., CPA Chief Information Officer (CIO), City & County of San Francisco (appointed 12/4/14) Executive Director of the Department of Technology Miguel A Gamiño Jr. provides strategic direction for San Francisco’s use of technology. He counsels Mayor Lee, the Board of Supervisors and city departments regarding opportunities to leverage technology to […]

Thinking about heading off to college can be daunting, for students and parents alike. Especially when it comes to paying for that degree. Most students needs some sort of financing package and that’s where Free Applications for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) comes in. Think of FAFSA as the gateway to money for higher education. Not only […]

In December 2012, MEDA worked with city agencies and 26 neighborhood partners to be the honored recipient of a $30-million federal Department of Education grant to replicate New York’s successful Harlem Children’s Zone in the Mission District of San Francisco. The goal of the Mission Promise Neighborhood (MPN) is to guide students on a cradle-to-college-to-career […]

Christopher Gil, Senior Content Marketing Specialist (415) 282-3334 ext. 152 cgil@medasf.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 5, 2015 Education on Street Safety the Goal of Mission Promise Neighborhood Grant Sense of urgency after recent accidents in Mission neighborhood San Francisco, CA –The Mission Promise Neighborhood (MPN) has announced its receipt of a grant to foster street […]

MLK’s legacy in the Latino community As we take time today to ponder the legacy of the late Martin Luther King Jr., it is important to note that the civil rights leader was fighting for justice for all Americans. That includes Latinos. There is even more to commemorate this year, which marks the 50th anniversary […]

A stroll through the bustling Mission this morning revealed some scary scenes. A pedestrian texted while crossing at Valencia and 24th streets, oblivious to the cars turning in his direction. A few places north, a bicyclist brazenly weaved in and out of traffic. Over on Mission and 19th, a car sped up, barely make it through […]

As part of the Promise Neighborhood grant, the United States Department of Education (DoE) mandates that all Promise Neighborhood grantees administer an annual school climate survey, at their target middle and high schools, to understand the impact of the initiative on students. Findings from the first school climate survey for the Mission Promise Neighborhood are now […]

When code.org devised its first “Hour of Code” grassroots campaign a year ago, they never could have imagined the impact: in a mere two weeks, over 20 million people participated and over 600-million lines of code had been written. That led to another challenge this December for the week of the 8th to the14th, part of “Computer […]

Guest Blog by Teresa Morales Mission Promise Neighborhood Community Engagement It was an early Thanksgiving feast, Latino-style, held at MEDA’s Plaza Adelante on November 14th, with staff and promotoras sharing a meal. It was time to give a year-end thanks to these amazing community outreach workers, the six women who began working with MEDA and […]