NEWS FROM KIDDO!
Find recent updates and communications from Kiddo! here.
Welcome Back, Families!
August 13, 2025
With less than ten days before school starts, we are writing with a refresher on the role of Kiddo! in the Mill Valley School District (MVSD) and the programming we offer to all students, TK-8. Excellent schools require the engagement of the entire community. Kiddo! is proud to partner with MVSD and the Mill Valley Parent Teacher Associations (PTA) to ensure that every student in our district benefits from this outstanding education.
Arts education rounds out the amazing education our students are already receiving to introduce them to the arts, and it offers older students the opportunity to dive deeper into an area of their choosing. Additionally, beginning this year, Kiddo! is providing funding to MVSD to support wellness and counseling, new STEM electives at MVMS, and transitional kindergarten. None of this would be possible without the generosity of our community. In fact, nearly 80% of our annual fundraising comes directly from families, like yours, in the MVSD. We ask for an annual donation of $1,450 per student, but all donations are welcomed and appreciated. Please consider giving at a level that is meaningful to your family.
NEWS FROM KIDDO!
Thank You and Looking Ahead to 2025
June 5, 2025
With only a week left of school, we want to send a final thank you to all our generous donors and volunteers for your support this school year. Through the resounding success of our Annual Campaign, Business Partnerships, and events (including our beloved Kiddo! Carnival), we have raised over $2 million this year for the students of Mill Valley. We also had a tremendously successful 2025 Gala and Auction, which raised money for our Innovative Teacher Grants and the Kiddo! Endowment. We are thrilled to bring the community together with the goal of supporting our students.
Looking Ahead to 2025-2026
We will continue to provide grant support to the Mill Valley School District to fund our existing arts education programs in grades TK-8. Additionally, we will provide programming such as poetry, drama, and dance with visiting artists and fund supplies for music and art. As in years past, this funding will come directly from our Annual Campaign. Each school year, we raise money to fund the current year’s arts education. Nearly 80% of that funding comes directly from you, our parent community - thank you!
In 2025-2026, we will provide $500,000 to the MVSD for Transitional Kindergarten (TK) and $500,000 to support counselors/wellness in the elementary schools and STEM electives at Mill Valley Middle School. The funding for TK is one-time funding for the 2025-2026 school year, intended to help ensure a continuation of the robust and successful TK program that MVSD has built. The support for wellness and STEM will continue for a total of three years. Kiddo!’s financial support will allow the District to maintain the current level of counseling and wellness support across all five elementary schools. As shared earlier this Spring, this funding will come from excess funds in our reserve accounts in keeping with our Reserve Policy and with approval from our Kiddo! Board of Directors…
Additional Funding From Kiddo!
May 5, 2025
We are pleased to announce that the Kiddo! Board of Directors has agreed to increase our financial commitment to MVSD to support critical gaps in K-8 education as well as the possible reinstatement of Mill Valley’s TK program for the 2025-2026 school year. This decision was made after thoughtful consideration in light of the current budget crisis and with the imminent needs of our students top of mind. It is very important to note that this DOES NOT change our commitment to funding arts education across MVSD for the current or future school years.
This additional funding will be provided from Kiddo! Reserves. The Kiddo! Reserves are separate financial accounts funded by event revenues and interest income. The Kiddo! Reserve Policy sets guidelines for appropriate balance requirements to support our annual operating budget in case of crisis or fundraising shortfalls; reserve balances in excess of this amount are intended to be spent at the Kiddo! Board’s discretion as opportunities arise. The Board has determined that the current needs of the District warrant accessing these funds at this time. Kiddo! is in a healthy financial position with respect to all operating budgets, investment accounts, and fiscal management. No funding for this additional commitment will come from the 2024-2025 Annual Campaign.