History

LPIE was founded in 1980 as the Lafayette Arts & Science Foundation (LASF) by a small group of parents concerned about the cutbacks in arts and science programs in the schools as a result of Proposition 13.

‹Founded by Su Stauffer, Helen Troxel and Bob Wood, the organization began with a modest budget of $10,000 and 19 parent volunteers who worked closely with district teachers and administrators to raise funds, plan programs and hire qualified instructors to bring art, music and science back into the classrooms.

‹LASF released its first annual report in 1981. With 7 instructors, new programs included lectures on German expressionism at Acalanes High School, art history classes at Springhill and the beginnings of orchestras at Springhill Elementary, Vallecito and Happy Valley.

‹In 2010, the organization changed its name to Lafayette Partners in Education (LPIE) and shifted its funding model to provide greater support to the Lafayette schools. 

‹Since its inception over 36 years ago, LPIE has provided funds for instruction in art, music, writing, science and social studies. Today it has more than 120 volunteers, over 100 classroom instructors, an executive director and a small office staff. For the 2015-2016 school year, LPIE raised a record $2.844 million dollars, which supported all curriculum areas as well as teacher development, technology investments and classroom materials.