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Detail from artworks by Wiley (Architecture + Design 2025)
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Dear Friends of Ruth Asawa School of the Arts,
In a time of deep uncertainty for public education and the arts, we stand firm in our commitment to arts education and arts-based learning in our schools. Thanks to your partnership, we continue to fund without hesitation the projects and programs that support not just a school but a revolution in education. Read on for a few recent highlights.
Together we are mighty.
With gratitude,
Anne Yanow
President, FOSOTA
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Dreamers of Dreams mural installation in progress
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Vibrant New Community Mural Going Live
Join us at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Dreamers of Dreams, a tribute to arts educators who have inspired San Francisco youth in the classroom and beyond. Sited along Woodside Drive, the mural was developed by artist Nico Berry in partnership with FOSOTA and made possible with a grant from the SF Arts Commission. The ceremony—with artist remarks, honoree introductions, and live entertainment—takes place on Thursday, April 10, 4:30–6 p.m. For details and free tickets, see the event’s press release.
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Capstone projects documented @sotacapstone
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2025 Senior Capstone Projects in Full Swing
Since 2019, FOSOTA has awarded nearly $100K in grants and funding for senior capstone projects—in-depth explorations with real-world applications that integrate the academic, artistic, cultural, and personal experiences of an arts-based education. Follow along on Instagram with Capstone Marketing (itself a capstone project) as it documents the Class of 2025’s projects.
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A student mural transforms one of the farm’s storage containers
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The Farm is Buzzing
Grants from the USDA, SF Parks Alliance, Youth Empowerment Fund, and SHARP are helping FOSOTA expand multidisciplinary farm-to-school programming and support McAteer Campus Community Farm’s mission to become San Francisco’s first schoolyard farm providing produce for public school meals. What’s new? Raised garden beds, a shadehouse, fruit trees, a bee mural, and the season’s first crops— ready for harvest and headed to the cafeteria. Join us for the next community work day on Saturday, April 26, 11 am–2 pm. See details.
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Presentation slide from YEF grantee SF Youth Literary Laureate
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SF Youth Literary Laureate Awarded $10K Grant
Awarded by the YMCA’s Youth Empowerment Fund and managed by FOSOTA, the grant supports the youth-led organization in its mission to empower San Francisco youth literary artists to inspire change through prose, poetry, and storytelling. Literary Laureates teach, mentor, perform, and publish, with the goal of engaging young learners and ultimately having a measurable impact on youth literacy in SF.
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Visions of a STEM lab for students by students
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Cyberdragons Lead SFUSD Robotics Initiative
High school robotics teams from Ruth Asawa SOTA, Galileo, George Washington, and Lowell have joined forces to build a community STEM lab where San Francisco students can work, learn, and innovate together. Funded in part by a FOSOTA-managed grant from the Youth Empowerment Fund, the project aims to establish a centralized space for interactive robotics demos and hands-on workshops that promote multidisciplinary learning and enrichment. Keep up with the Cyberdragons on Instagram.
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Spore prints by Gillian Murdock (Visual Arts 2020)
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Help Us Grow
We’re growing our board of directors. If you’re passionate about arts education and arts-based learning, check out our board nomination form. Or consider joining one of our advisory committees: Communications, Youth Grants, Alumni, Fundraising, Finance, and Farm. Connect with us at friends@fosota.org for more information.
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FOSOTA Mighty Messenger
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Detail from artwork by Erin Liew (Visual Arts 2024)
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Dear Friends of Ruth Asawa School of the Arts,
Grants are in the spotlight this issue as we extend our deepest gratitude to all those who have joined us in supporting a revolution in education. From the grants we receive to the grants we give, all are applied in service of our mission to champion arts education and arts-based learning through advocacy, outreach, philanthropy, and community.
Together we are mighty.
Yours in community,
Anne Yanow
President, FOSOTA
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Free community events at McAteer Campus Community Farm
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Pizza Farm! Awarded SF Parks Alliance Grant
FOSOTA is the proud recipient of an SF Parks Alliance ShineOn Action Award for Pizza Farm!—a series of free events celebrating farm-to-fork culinary arts at McAteer Campus Community Farm. Join us in the fields at our kick-off event on August 17 for wood-fired pizza from the farm’s newly restored adobe pizza oven, live music, and garden camaraderie. Get free tickets at Eventbrite.
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Detail from a community mural by Nico Berry
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FOSOTA Receives SF Arts Commission Mural Grant
The grant will fund a new public mural to transform a neglected urban wall into a vibrant community artwork celebrating arts educators in SF public schools. FOSOTA has enaged mural artist and California Arts Council fellow Nico Berry to bring the wall to life. Arts educators have been nominated and selected, and the mural design is under way. Stay tuned for opportunities to join Nico in painting the mural at community painting days this fall.
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The farm’s greenhouse, chicken coop, and kitchen
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USDA Awards FOSOTA $100K Farm to School Grant
The USDA announced its record-breaking $14 million in Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grants, and we are excited to announce that FOSOTA was among the awardees. FOSOTA’s $100,000 grant will expand the McAteer Campus Community Farm in partnership with several organizations, creating multidisciplinary farm-to-school programming and establishing it as San Francisco’s first schoolyard farm providing produce for public school meals. Read more.
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Ocean Ale House owners and Asawa SOTA alums Daniel Silberman and Miles Escobedo > |
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Alumni Corner
Reminder: The 20th reunion for the Asawa SOTA Class of 2004 is this Saturday, August 3, at the alum-owned Ocean Ale House. Friends, family, kids, teachers, students, and alums from any year are all welcome. Join us!
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Alums, are you involved in any events that you’d like to share with the Ruth Asawa SOTA Alumni network? We’ll help you get the word out. Send us details using the Alumni Event Submission Form.
Upcoming: Los Jefes (left), recent Asawa SOTA alums, perform at Brick and Mortar on Sunday, August 4. Tickets >
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Sign up to receive the Asawa SOTA Alumni Newsletter for news and information on reunions, events, networking, and more. We are excited to build our community of alumni, students, family, and friends.
Did You Know? Funded by FOSOTA to foster equity and inclusion, the alumni association is dues-free, and all Asawa SOTA alums (graduates and past attendees) are automatically members.
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Spore prints by Gillian Murdock (Visual Arts 2020)
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Help Us Grow
We’re growing our board of directors. If you’re passionate about arts education and arts-based learning, check out our board nomination form. Or consider joining one of our advisory committees: Communications, Youth Grants, Alumni, Fundraising, Finance, and Farm. Connect with us at friends@fosota.org for more information.
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Full of gratitude.
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Fire-bellied toad by Gillian Murdock (Visual Arts 2020)
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Full of gratitude.
As 2024 draws to a close, I want to express my immense gratitude for you as a champion of arts education and arts-based learning. Thanks to your support, Friends of Ruth Asawa School of the Arts . . .
- granted over $45K in funding for student, alumni, and artist projects, including a youth workshop series to fill the overlooked gap between art and entrepreneurship, an arts-based environmental justice initiative, and a public artwork celebrating San Francisco arts educators.
- worked with funders including YMCA’s Youth Empowerment Fund and San Francisco Arts Commission to provide free or low-fee grant management for over $185K in student and teaching-artist grants.
- administered and funded 11 Asawa SOTA scholastic awards recognizing achievement, impact, and growth through scholarship, creative inquiry, outreach and inclusion, and cultural engagement.
- partnered with the USDA and local organizations to kick off programming in outdoor learning and sustainable culinary arts, establishing the McAteer schoolyard farm as San Francisco’s first to provide produce for public school meals.
I know your inbox is full of year-end appeals, but if you need a little last-minute inspiration for a tax-deductible donation, please join us in supporting a revolution in education.
With gratitude,
Anne Yanow
President, FOSOTA
FOSOTA turns 25 in 2025!
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FOSOTA Mighty Messenger
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Detail from artwork by Hannah Pon (Visual Arts 2020)
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Dear Friends of Ruth Asawa School of the Arts,
Did you know studies have shown that students who practice the arts display higher levels of emotional intelligence, social tolerance, and cultural engagement? As the founders of Turnaround Arts: California asked, “Are any qualities more needed in the United States right now?” We believe in the power of arts-based education to transform our lives, our communities, and our world. In this issue, we invite you to learn more about the grants, funding, and support that—thanks to you—we are able to provide in service of a revolution in education.
Together we are mighty.
With gratitude,
Anne Yanow
President, FOSOTA
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Grant awardee Peertraits, founded by Maile Din (Musical Theatre 2023)
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Managing $350K+ in Student Grants, and Counting
Working with grantmakers such as YMCA’s Youth Empowerment Fund, FOSOTA provides free or low-fee grant management for projects by students from high schools throughout the city. Example projects include Danceable—a dance program for neurodivergent and physically disabled youth, Persistent Planet—an arts-based environmental justice initiative, and Peertraits—a free alternative to commercial senior portraits. With your support, FOSOTA has sponsored over 130 San Francisco high school students since 2020.
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Capstone project zine by Kailee Kwon-Rustia (Media 2024)
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Capstone Projects Shine a Light on Arts-Based Learning
Since 2019, FOSOTA has awarded nearly $100K in grants and funding for senior projects and student mentoring. Example projects include Rolling Arts—a youth workshop series to fill the overlooked gap between art and entrepreneurship, Listen to House Flies—a professionally recorded EP of original music, and Arts Embrace—a middle school arts education outreach program. Check out the class of 2024’s capstone projects on Instagram.
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Psst... Our winter See’s Candies shop is open. Shop candy + support arts education!
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Detail from a visual poem at the Citywide Youth Arts Festival > |
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Bringing Visual Art Poetry to SF Schools
California Poets in the Schools poet-teacher Susan Terence was awarded a $43K SF Arts Commission grant with FOSOTA acting as fiscal sponsor. Her project brought poetry writing + visual art sessions to over 1000 SFUSD students, empowering them to find their voices through themes such as activism, family culture, and oral history. We are proud to support our artist-educators in bringing arts-based learning into our schools.
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Arkaid: Clothing for a cause by alum grantee Zachary Lipsett (Musical Theatre 2023) > |
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Alums: Celebrating the Arts, Shaping the Future
Funded by FOSOTA to foster equity and inclusion, the Asawa SOTA Alumni Association is dues-free, and all alums (graduates and attendees) are automatically members. Alums: Find out more about our recently piloted alumni project grant program and get updates on reunions, socials, events, opportunities, and more. Join the alumni list!
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Art for Change award: Applying creative practices to inform, challenge, and inspire
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Recognizing Achievement, Impact, and Growth
FOSOTA administers and funds scholastic awards that recognize students who have demonstrated exceptional achievement, impact, or growth through their academics, creative practices, or community engagement. In addition to having funded 6K in FOSOTA-sponsored awards since 2021, we manage over 10 other awards on behalf of the school. Find about more about contributing to or establishing a fund.
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Grazing pigs Betty and Gracie (rear) at work on the farm. Photo: Chloe Peterson-Nafziger
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Growing McAteer Campus Community Farm
In July, FOSOTA received a $100K USDA grant to partner with local organizations in establishing the schoolyard farm as San Francisco’s first to provide produce for public school meals. We have also applied our grants from SHARP and SF Parks Alliance to rebuilding the farm’s wood-fired adobe pizza oven, funding site improvements, and creating Pizza Farm!—a series of public events to generate interest in farm stewardship and sustainable culinary arts. Read #farm news.
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Spore prints by Gillian Murdock (Visual Arts 2020)
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Help Us Grow
We’re growing our board of directors. If you’re passionate about arts education and arts-based learning, check out our board nomination form. Or consider joining one of our advisory committees: Communications, Youth Grants, Alumni, Fundraising, Finance, and Farm. Connect with us at friends@fosota.org for more information.
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Here's to you.
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Still Life with Cake by Cassandra Dowd (Visual Arts 2024) after Raphaelle Peale
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Here’s to you.
As 2023 draws to a close, I want to thank you for showing up as a champion of arts education and arts-based learning. Thanks to your support, Friends of Ruth Asawa School of the Arts . . .
- managed and funded over $75K in grants for student projects, including a dance program for neurodivergent and physically disabled youth, a clothing brand raising funds for LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness, and free senior portraits for low-income students.
- partnered with YMCA’s Youth Empowerment Fund, San Francisco Arts Commission, Youth Leadership Institute, Youth Funding Youth Ideas, and SOTA Cyberdragons to provide fiscal sponsorship for student and teaching-artist grants.
- administered and funded twelve Asawa SOTA scholastic awards recognizing achievement, impact, and growth through scholarship, creative inquiry, outreach and inclusion, and cultural engagement.
- funded the restoration of the McAteer campus farm’s hand-built adobe pizza oven, helping to kickoff new programming in outdoor learning and sustainable culinary arts.
I know your inbox is filled with year-end appeals, but if you need a little last-minute inspiration for a tax-deductible donation, please join us in supporting a revolution in education.
With gratitude,
Anne Yanow
President, FOSOTA
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