The Kirkpatrick Foundation has long supported education in Oklahoma City, making efforts to sustain the stakeholders of preK-12, university-level, and out-of-school programming. From facilitating the implementation of the A+ Schools model in Oklahoma to providing grant support for after-school activities and university research, our reach in Oklahoma’s educational environment is diverse and strong.

“To improve the quality of life in Oklahoma City, there is no more important investment than to better the education of our children,” says Kirkpatrick Foundation program officer Paulette Black. “By ‘education,’ I don’t just mean formal classroom lessons—I mean working to really listen to children, meeting their needs in school, after school, and beyond.”

Since its inception in 1955, the foundation also has funded such institutions as the Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation, Casady School, Heritage Hall, Bishop McGuinness, and several colleges and universities, including major gifts to Oklahoma State University, the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City University, the University of Central Oklahoma, and Oklahoma Christian. In 1998, the foundation helped to establish the DaVinci Institute, an Oklahoma think-tank of creative, interdisciplinary leaders in higher education.

Efforts to fund education outside of traditional schools and universities include the support of teacher-training institutes, arts education enrichment, summer camps, literacy education, and more. The Kirkpatrick Foundation’s investment in the future of Oklahoma is made clear in our grants to the educational programs that impact so many lives.