Boston Schools Seeking $25-Million from Private Donors

The Boston public school system has launched a three-year, $25-million campaign aimed at securing philanthropic funds to improve recruitment, retention, and training of teachers and principals, writes The Boston Globe.

While the system has solicited private money in the past, the new effort marks a more aggressive approach by city officials in the face of budget cuts and growing pressure to boost the quality of Boston schools, the newspaper says. A growing number of large urban systems are stepping up efforts to raise private dollars to meet staffing, technology, and other needs.

“We know we can’t do it alone in order to make transformational changes,” interim Superintendent John McDonough said last week after a downtown meeting in which he appealed for contributions from about 100 members of the city’s philanthropic, nonprofit, and business communities.