November Highlights: LA Lender Tour | BayTech Site Visit | TPCSA Connections
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Creating Long-Term Homes for High-Quality Charter Schools
NOVEMBER 2024
In this Issue
FEATURED
PCSD LA Lender Tour
SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS
Lighthouse Intern Spotlight
BayTech Construction Site Visit
OUR PEOPLE
TCSD at TPCSA Conference
Dear Friends and Partners,
This past month, we had the chance to connect with partners, support our team’s learning, and celebrate project milestones.
We hosted an LA Lender Tour, welcoming financial partners to see how their support directly impacts equitable school facilities in Los Angeles.
In Oakland, our Lighthouse intern spotlight this month also highlights their deep dive into school design fundamentals, with insights from industry experts that bring design concepts to life. Additionally, we visited the BayTech construction site, where we got an up-close look at the progress on this expanded campus—an invaluable experience for our future facility developers - check out our student guest blogger!
Meanwhile, our Texas team gathered at the TPCSA Conference to connect with charter school leaders, sharing our commitment to creating long-term, financially sustainable facilities for students across Texas.
Thank you for following our journey as we work toward dismantling educational inequities—one project, partnership, and tour at a time! As always, please continue to follow us on LinkedIn.
Warmly,
John Sun
FEATURED
PCSD LA Lender Tour
With so many partners in town for the Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) Conference, we took the chance to share our work in action with a special tour of three charter school campuses in downtown LA. Here are the inspiring stops we visited:
- Citizens of the World LA – Silver Lake Middle School
- Equitas Academy 5/6
- Ednovate Hybrid High
This tour was made possible thanks to the strong turnout from our amazing partners: Capital Impact Partners, US Bank, LISC, BlueHub Capital, ExED, LIIF, Chase Bank, and NFF. Your support is critical to expanding educational opportunities in under-resourced communities.
SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS
Lighthouse Intern Spotlight
Our fall intern, Alejandra Arias, recently shared her insights on designing impactful educational spaces. After meeting with Keivan Abidi from PCSD and Cyrus Amani, AIA, MBA from LCA Architects, Alejandra showed how thoughtful design can transform schools into places for growth and discovery. From technical planning to creative inspiration, she shared her journey in balancing practical needs with inspiring spaces.
BayTech Construction Site Visit
Jennifer Afdahl Rice’s son, Isaac, joined us on a visit to the construction site of BayTech's new campus and got an incredible introduction to Building Information Modeling (BIM) from Overaa Construction’s superintendent. Through 3D models and color-coded layers, he saw firsthand how every detail—down to the last piece of steel or wood—has to align perfectly. Isaac even learned about critical safety measures, like safety cords for workers high up, and got a peek at how we repair structural details.
OUR PEOPLE
TCSD Connects at TPCSA Conference
Our TCSD team had an amazing time at the Texas Public Charter Schools Association (TPCSA) Conference in San Antonio!
We were thrilled to host a charter school facilities luncheon, where we shared insights on creating sustainable and affordable spaces for students in under-resourced communities. It was great to present at the conference on "Facility Solutions for Charter School Operators," helping school leaders explore innovative strategies to tackle their facility challenges.
On top of that, reconnecting with colleagues and meeting new friends from across the sector made this event all the more memorable.
