Message from Priscilla Chan and news from across our initiatives.
STANDING IN SOLIDARITY TO
Combat Trauma
BY PRISCILLA CHAN
After a traumatic past year, it’s been an especially tough few weeks. Our hearts are heavy for the families and loved ones of those killed in mass shootings in Atlanta and Boulder.
And as a daughter of Chinese-Vietnamese refugees, I’m deepy shaken and outraged by the pattern of violence, discrimination, and hate-fueled rhetoric against Asian Americans over the past year. Anti-Asian hate is not new. But it’s been especially difficult to see members of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities scapegoated and harassed in connection with a global pandemic they’re fighting to survive, too. CZI stands in solidarity with AAPI communities and will continue doing our part to ensure all communities of color are seen and safe.
These recent tragedies only compound the trauma children and their families have experienced since the beginning of the pandemic. Covid-19 has completely upended education in America and underlined something we already knew: An education system that meets the needs of the whole child is critical to ensuring all students reach their full potential. That means supporting teachers and students as whole people—advancing differentiated learning experiences that not only support academic achievement, but also physical, social, emotional, and identity development.
Everyday I’m inspired by our partners—students, educators, communities, researchers and families—who are striving to equitably meet the holistic needs of every child. This includes The Healthy Environments and Response to Trauma in Schools (HEARTS) program at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF).
Led by Dr. Joyce Dorado, HEARTS partners with schools to address trauma by creating safer, supportive, equitable, and engaging learning environments. Watch the full video to learn more about their award-winning approach to supporting student, teacher, and community well-being.
With care,
CO-FOUNDER AND CO-CEO
CHAN ZUCKERBERG INITIATIVE
As part of our COVID-19 response work, we’re supporting the Kaiser Family Foundation COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor. Using a combination of surveys and focus groups, this interactive dashboard is a critical resource for decision-makers across the public and private sectors as they work to increase vaccinations and combat vaccine hesitancy.
Building relationships with her students was always a priority for 6th grade teacher Jennifer Sinclair, but even more so after her training with the UCSF HEARTS program. Learn why she considers HEARTS a game-changer program and how she's leveraging what she’s learned to support students during the pandemic.
To cure, prevent, or manage all diseases, scientific research should include people of all ancestries. That’s why we launched a new funding opportunity to expand the ancestral diversity of the samples in the Human Cell Atlas, an international effort to map all cells in the human body.
To address COVID-19 health inequities in most impacted communities, we’re supporting Together Toward Health (TTH), an initiative led by the Public Health Institute. TTH partners with community-based organizations to stop the spread of coronavirus and strengthen health and resilience in communities across California, including the Bay Area.
We’re at a pivotal moment nationwide for criminal justice and immigration reform, which is why we recently announced $450 million in new commitments to better empower movement leaders and accelerate progress. To steward these resources, we’re launching an independent criminal justice organization, the Justice Accelerator Fund. We’re also providing new support to longtime partners at FWD.us to supercharge immigration reform efforts.
Visit our blog and see how we’re leveraging philanthropy and technology to change the world.
