CAA’s Richard Lovett, Pritzker Family Foundation and Ballmer Group Launch Fund to Help LAUSD Students

With 80 percent of Los Angeles Unified School District families living below the poverty line, CAA president Richard Lovett has teamed with the Anthony and Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation and the Ballmer Group to launch a fund to help these students amid the growing coronavirus pandemic that forced the indefinite closure of L.A.’s public schools on Monday.

“Schools are the center of the communities we serve and provide an important part of the social safety net for many families and their children,” superintendent Austin Beutner said Thursday in a statement announcing the fund. “On an ordinary day, we serve more than one million meals to children. These are not ordinary days, and we must continue to support those most in need.”

Seeded with a $250,000 contribution from each of the three parties, LA Students Most in Need will provide support to impacted families via meals and other supplies, as well as digital resources such as devices, e-libraries and e-books to enable distance learning.

Tax-deductible donations can be made at the California Community Foundation’s portal for LA Students Most in Need. “I hope anyone who can donate any amount, large or small, will pitch in to help,” Lovett said in a statement. “This is about feeding children in our city.”

Since last fall, CAA has provided pro bono services to LAUSD for various public education initiatives. In addition, Matthew McConaughey’s just keep livin foundation, which has provided LAUSD after-school programs, also is joining the effort.

“Since L.A.’s schools are closed, many Los Angeles students and families are going without the resources they depend on to get through the day. That’s why I’m donating to LA Students Most in Need,” the Oscar-winning actor said in a statement. “The money pays for meals, snacks, supplies, access to technology — everything these kids need to learn and to thrive.”

Added Anthony Pritzker in a statement: “This moment reminds us of how much more our schools do for our communities beyond teaching our children. In schools throughout Los Angeles Unified, people work tirelessly to give each student the tools to succeed, the security of receiving a warm meal, and safety and shelter for kids who may not have it anywhere else. During the coming weeks and months, it’s never been more important for all of us to come together to support our schools to ensure that every child can continue to achieve their full potential.”