Chris Dusseault, Chair of the Board of Directors
I hope you and your family are healthy and staying connected. I want to thank you for trusting and supporting LA’s BEST, especially this past fiscal year. Our year started strong, and we thank you for facing the unprecedented challenges of 2020 with us.
Each one of us feels the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, yet economically distressed neighborhoods — where LA’s BEST works – have been the hardest hit. This disproportionate impact stems from the systemic racial and economic inequity throughout our society, and LA’s BEST strives to combat and overcome these disparities. We recognize the connectedness of our community and believe that fighting for equity and change is important work for all of us. The children served by LA’s BEST deserve to have the same opportunities, the same health, and the same safety as children anywhere else in our country.
During the first half of the academic year, we continued offering students activities to enrich their lives. The 2019-2020 annual report below provides a slice of the enrichment activities we provided. Equipped with these opportunities generally only afforded to the affluent, students have the foundation to succeed in school and in life.
On March 13, 2020, everything changed when schools closed. I am proud of the way LA’s BEST shifted to meet the immediate needs of our community. Driven by our foundational values, we turned our focus to providing the services and basic essentials that our children and their families need in this time of unprecedented crisis. We also used this time to develop an even stronger workforce, better equipped to support our students and families, both today and once we emerge from the current crisis.
On behalf of all my fellow Board Members, thank you for enabling LA’s BEST to do what we do best: care for the children of Los Angeles and work towards equity. Together, we are cultivating community connections to serve all Angelenos.
