Note: this counter is manually updated rather than through any automatic connection to PayPal. Over the break, you may not see it updating but that does not mean we are not grateful for your gifts before the end of the year! THANK YOU!

Dear Cooper Families, 

Latin Pride, our first annual fundraising campaign, has officially launched! While this campaign is our inaugural one at Cooper, it follows in a tradition started years ago (before there was even a 2nd Street Campus, much less our Cooper Campus), when Latin parents sought to raise funds for the then-young Washington Latin. This tradition continues to this day: each fall, we ask all our families to donate to the school to help us close funding gaps, offer additional resources in the classroom, and ensure equal access for all students. The school asks, and parent volunteers follow up with emails, texts, and calls to their fellow parents. 

This year, we are launching Latin Pride at Cooper with the same idea: we ask every family to make a direct donation to support our work at Cooper. Direct donations mean no sales or auctions; your contribution goes immediately and entirely toward the experiences students have at Cooper, and helps us close the funding gap all charter schools face — especially important in Cooper’s early years as we work to establish and grow our campus.

Those are the basics, but the real question is: Why give to Latin Pride? 

Cooper is only in its second year, and some of you have been with us for just a few months, but I am hopeful that in that time we have provided you with reasons to support this campaign.

I’d like to share with you a little bit about why I continue to serve this community, in the hopes that you might find a reason like my own. I first joined Washington Latin in 2010 as a Special Education teacher. After five years supporting our students in that capacity, I took over administrative responsibilities as our Dean of Students; then as the Director of Student Support Services, 12th Grade Director, and Dean; and most recently before my current role, as Assistant Principal for Student Life and Culture. 

I have chosen to dedicate more than a decade of my life to Washington Latin because I know that it is something special. 

Within DC’s educational ecosystem, we are a unique gem doggedly pursuing the kinds of goals that set us apart from other institutions, the marriage of academic and character education being a primary one, as you know. 

We further firmly believe in the uplifting and liberating power of our classical mission to give our students tools to uphold all that is good, true, and beautiful in the world, while themselves being upstanding contributors to their communities. 

I have become increasingly devoted to these truths about who we are as a school with each role I have been given the opportunity to fill over the years, including the real and positive impact our approach can have on students from all backgrounds, with all abilities and challenges, and with all kinds of futures ahead of them. This classical education we provide is elite, but not elitist, and I believe in the power of it to help all young people discover their artistic, creative, intellectual, and, above all else, humane selves. 

In this inaugural Latin Pride campaign, we have two goals: to raise $50,000 and to get as close as possible to 100% participation from our Cooper community. We ask that families donate $600 per student at Cooper or what they can afford. Latin Pride gifts might range from $20 to $5,000, reflecting the diversity of our community. If you cannot give $600, please give what works for your family. If you can give more, we welcome larger gifts that serve the common good. 

Our second goal speaks to who we are as a school community: we are all in this together and we are all in. We aim for 100% family participation in Latin Pride. Whether you are capable of donating a dollar or a thousand dollars this year, we hope that everyone will participate. 

There are a variety of ways to give: make a one-time gift, or set monthly donations that spread your contribution out over time. Your employer might match donations to 501(c)(3) organizations (which Washington Latin is) — we welcome that! Perhaps your parents, aunts, cousins, or friends would like to support your children’s experience at Cooper — please share the Latin Pride page with them, too! You can learn more about all this by reading below about all giving options. And be ready for a call from a fellow parent! Cooper parent volunteers will be contacting fellow families to encourage donation. You can come off that list if you make a gift today! 

Together, with our campaign volunteers, I invite you to show your Latin Pride!

Gratefully, 

Khashiffa Roberts
Principal 

Need a different amount?

Email or call us ([email protected])!

Building community

Our social activities, from family picnics and orientations in the fall to teacher appreciation week, are arranged by family volunteers and funded by the PFA. Your donation to Latin Pride helps make these events possible.

Focus on Faculty

Excellent teachers and small classes are key to the Washington Latin. The model works because we know our students. And it is expensive. Your donation to Latin Pride helps support these essential facets of the Latin program.

Enriching student life

Your donation also provides direct funding to classrooms for materials and funding of important student experiences, such as field trips and after school activities.

Building community

Our social activities, from family picnics and orientations in the fall to teacher appreciation week, are arranged by family volunteers and funded by the PFA. Your donation to Latin Pride helps make these events possible.