MV GATE is an organization of Mill Valley parents dedicated to two premises: first, that parents represent a great and largely untapped resource in our kids’ education; and second, that to be happy and secure, our children must possess a far richer set of computer science and life skills than any previous generation.
MV GATE was founded by John Pearce and Jeff Leane, inspired by the work of earlier Mill Valley parents in the realm of gifted and talented education (GATE). John and Jeff felt that parents could orchestrate significant, creative, enjoyable learning for their own and others’ children. They opened MV GATE programs to all kids, concluding that every child’s gifts can blossom when they self-select into programs that inspire their participation and engagement. Then they offered a varied set of out-of-school and after-school learning experiences, most recently focused on computer science via the fabulous range of online and community resources in technology and creative thinking.
A nonprofit off-shoot of Mill Valley’s It Takes a Village PTA, and partially funded by ITAV’s generous grants, MV GATE has quickly grown to be the town’s largest parent organization with more than 1,000 members. MV GATE’s programs rely upon direct participation of the remarkable community of parents in Mill Valley. Parent Instructors help lead computer science courses for their children; parent volunteers lead programs ranging from marine biology sails on San Francisco Bay to special tours of places like the Autodesk Design Gallery or the Marine Mammal Center; and parent patrons fund special programs in which their own remarkable contacts and interests create unprecedented learning opportunities for kids.
MV GATE partners directly with school and community institutions. The Hour of Code Night program, piloted with amazing success at Old Mill School (and featured on the front page of the Marin Independent Journal), has now been brought to every elementary school in town, followed by the CodeKids coding class for 2nd through 5th graders. Other programs reflecting the MV GATE model of parents+schools+community are rapidly developing, indicating the unlimited potential of this powerful combination.
Specific MV GATE programs for kids and families include: computer science learning including Hour of Code Night, CodeKids, and Build Your Own Computer; a SF Bay Marine Biology Sail; Advanced Math Clubs at Old Mill and other schools; providing grants to send Mill Valley teachers to the California Association for Gifted Education Symposium; the Presidio Ropes Course; Mt Diablo Tarantula Hike; special programs at the Marine Mammal Center; AutoDesk; and Pixar Animation Studios; with more to come.
Membership is now open to families with children grade K-8, with plans to grow to high school programs, and to extend the MV GATE model to other interested communities. Membership donation is nominal, and all members receive MV GATE Bulletins & eNewsletter, plus program invitations tailored to kids’ interests and grade level. Needless to say, parents are invited to join in program and event creation, advocacy, and parent & child education programs. Indeed, parents drive everything we do – we look forward to your ideas and contribution. So join us!
You can reach MV GATE at MVGATEAC at gmail dot com. We look forward to the fun and engagement of helping our kids learn inspiring things together.
MV GATE 