The Elkhart Education Foundation is a left-of-center organization that provides extracurricular programmatic support, as well as other resources, to the Elkart Community Schools system in Elkhart, Indiana. ¹ In 2021, EKF provided the school system with $30,000 in grants for Extended Content Standards (ECS) classes as well as $30,000 in grants for sports and clubs. ²

Background

In 2013 Hayley Boling founded the Elkhart Education Foundation to meet funding gaps that existed in the Elkart Community Schools system. ³

Financials

In 2021, Elkart Education Foundation received $182,763 in contributions, ⁴ $178,024 in program services revenue, ⁵ $330,619 in total revenue, ⁶ made $506,210 in expenditures, ⁷ and held $237,798 in net assets. ⁸

Partner Organization

The Elkhart Education Foundation has partnered with the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and Justice to provide the center’s “Speak Truth to Power” programming as a form of extracurricular education for the Elkart Community Schools system. ⁹

The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and Justice publishes educational resources that are to the left-of-center on LGBT issues, such as articles produced profiling Schuyler Bailar, the first transgender NCAA Division I swimmer, and praising efforts to include transgender natal males in professional sports. ¹⁰ The educational programming instructs teachers to use gender pronouns, to call on students to use gender pronouns if they so choose, and to refer to individuals such as Bailar as “human rights defenders from the transgender and non-binary communities.” ¹⁰

The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and Justice has supported the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, ¹¹ advocated for the elimination of cash bail, ¹¹ and encouraged individuals to join BLM riots in 2020. ¹¹

Leadership

Ellen Williams is the executive director of the Elkhart Education Foundation. ¹² Prior to joining the organization, Williams was the director of the Take Ten program at the University of Notre Dame’s Robinson Community Learning Center. ¹³ During her time at Robinson Community Learning Center, Williams focused on “restorative justice,” youth violence, and conflict resolution. ¹⁴

1. “About.” Elkart Education Foundation. https://www.elkhartedfoundation.org/about/
2. “2021 Impact Report.” Elkart Education Foundation. https://www.elkhartedfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/EEF-2021-Impact-Report.pdf
3. “About.” https://www.elkhartedfoundation.org/about/
4. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Elkart Education Foundation. Part I. Line 8. 2022.
5. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Elkart Education Foundation. Part I. Line 9. 2022.
6. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Elkart Education Foundation. Part I. Line 12. 2022.
7. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Elkart Education Foundation. Part I. Line 18. 2022.
8. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Elkart Education Foundation. Part I. Line 22. 2022.
9. “Partners.” Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and Justice. https://rfkhumanrights.org/our-programs/speak-truth-to-power/sttp-partners
10. “Speak Truth to Power 2020.” Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and Justice. https://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/f0b0e8cc-cca0-4f2f-bde9-598fc7af3457
11. “MINDLESS MENACE OF VIOLENCE.” Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and Justice. https://rfkhumanrights.org/voices-articles/take-action-against-the-mindless-menace-of-violence
12. “Staff.” Elkart Education Foundation. https://www.elkhartedfoundation.org/staff/
13. “Press Release.” Elkart Education Foundation.   https://www.educationfoundations.org/resources/Communications/Member%20News/2023-1019%20FOR%20IMMEDIATE%20RELEASE%20Elkhart%20Education%20Foundation%20welcomes%20New%20Executive%20Director%20Ellen%20Williams(1).pdf
14. “Ellen Williams” Living Justice Press. https://livingjusticepress.org/acadp_listings/ellen-kyes/