More than 850 people filled the Robert Crown Community Center for our 3rd Annual Evanston is Family Strong Back to School Family Fun Fest. We gave away 1,000 backpacks, 500 books, and a whole lot of joy. Here's a look at the day that reminded us what community really looks like.

For the first time in over six years, we came together in person. Our staff-board retreat centered on equity leadership included a full-group viewing and dialogue around Cracking the Codes: The System of Racial Inequity, reaffirming our commitment to anti-racism.

In November 2018, we gathered staff, board members, parent leaders, and partners in Pasadena to dream about our preferred future and to ask our community to help shape it. Here's a look at where we were headed.

In November, BSF's Katthe traveled to Nairobi to participate in Harambee Toto — a collective impact initiative focused on early childhood education, community development, and Parent Cafés in Kibera. The trip's centerpiece was a full cultural adaptation of the café model, now called Kikao Cha Wazazi — the sitting of the parents.