Joy2Learn Foundation

Philanthropy, The Arts, Education, Technology The Joy2Learn Foundation mission is to bring inspirational, world-renowned artists into the classroom to inspire students and enhance the learning process. The online presentations feature artists and create an arts platform that also educates and develops skills in core school subjects, including reading, writing, mathematics, science, history, and social studies. The Foundation has its origins in an organization founded in 1986 by Roger Duncan, Alan Gampel and Dr. William Teaford that was dedicated to raising scholarship funds to support talented young artists and musicians. By 2000, the founders’ vision transitioned to enhancing public education by encouraging the integration of quality arts-related content into the classroom environment. The content is free of charge for schools. Using a combination of Internet-based presentations, live video and other multimedia components, along with teacher education and development, Joy2Learn achieves its mission with an engaging, interactive format for both students and teachers. While the presentations feature the arts, they are also effective in reinforcing reading and writing skills and the study of mathematics, science, history, social studies and English language arts. The presentations are appropriate for elementary, middle and high school levels and accompanied by materials, including detailed lesson plans to support teachers, tailored to state curriculums. The George Lucas Foundation featured Joy2Learn in a documentary that was presented to the United States Congress to demonstrate how technology and the Internet are transforming education. Joy2Learn has received financial support from the California Department of Education, the Rockefeller Foundation, Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, Mattel Corporation, AT&T Foundation and other non-­profit foundations. In 2005, Joy2Learn received a substantial grant from the United States Department of Education.