The Bella Vista Foundation (BVF), carrying forward the legacy of sisters Georgiana Gerlinger Stevens and Jean Gerlinger Kirkwood, focuses on enhancing communities through literacy, healthy living, youth development and empowerment, environmental restoration, and support for young children.
The GGS Early Literacy Program by the Bella Vista Foundation aims to foster literacy among children, particularly focusing on reading, writing, comprehension, critical thinking, and self-expression skills. The program targets at-promise students from preschool through third grade in Marin and San Francisco counties. Funded programs are expected to be solely dedicated to early literacy with robust evaluation methods and a proven effectiveness track record, or community-based that incorporate literacy into broader educational content, especially for students facing challenges like English Language Learners. Funding can be used for general support, to enhance specific programs, improve evaluation methods, or develop collaborations with other literacy initiatives.