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Recent THINK Together News Stories

$8.5 Million Benefits Program That Keeps Pupils After School
Los Angeles Business Journal, CA – May 5, 2008
donation to THINK Together, which serves about 10,000 children in Los Angeles County, shows great leadership by the business community and educational leaders to join together in support of programs that serve our children best…

Ambulance visits Dunlap Elementary School
Yucaipa/Calimesa News Mirror, CA – Apr 17, 2008
The AMR team came to visit an after-school program known as “Think Together.” The program is directed by Cheryl Kleeman who explained, “The program is state …

Area after-school program lands Ueberroth Foundation grant
San Gabriel Valley Tribune, CA – Apr 13, 2008
One of the largest providers of after-school programs in California just got a financial boost. THINK Together, a nonprofit ...

Area after-school program lands Ueberroth Foundation grant
Pasadena Star-News, CA – Apr 13, 2008
One of the largest providers of after-school programs in California just got a financial boost. THINK Together, a nonprofit ...

South Whittier's schools switching to full-day kindergarten
Whittier Daily News, CA – Apr 10, 2008
Teachers will be on hand, classrooms will be open and parents can sign up for the free Think Together after-school program at the different sites. ...

After-school programs get big boost
Whittier Daily News, CA – Apr 4, 2008
 Area school districts' after-school programs got a shot in the arm recently when after-school provider "THINK Together”...

Cabazon Elementary is a great place to learn
The Record Gazette, CA - Apr 4, 2008
“Think Together” is an after school program with a focus on homework, enrichment and physical activities. It is easy to see why Cabazon Elementary is one of ...

Philanthropist Donates $8.5 Million To SoCal After-School Programs

LOS ANGELES -- Reaching beyond the Orange County communities he helped build, Developer and philanthropist Donald Bren has announced an $8.5 million donation to benefit after-school programs in Santa Ana and east Los Angeles County.

The gift will bolster Santa Ana-based THINK Together, an after-school program that extends the school day for children who need extra coaching with classwork or homework help, often because their parents are working or lack English skills, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The program provides an additional hour of schooling, homework assistance and physical education.

Bren, whose Irvine Co. and Donald Bren Foundation have contributed more than $200 million to public schools and universities, was motivated to choose THINK Together after a January speech by state Education Superintendent Jack O'Connell challenged listeners to "imagine if every school had access to a successful business partner to provide mentors, materials and opportunities for students," The Times reported.

The donation is Bren's largest outside the boundaries of the old Irvine Ranch, which included Irvine, Newport Beach, Tustin, Orange, Laguna Beach and Anaheim, Irvine Co. spokesman John Christensen told the newspaper.

Beyond having shaped the identity of cities like Irvine and high-end enclaves such as Newport Coast, the Irvine Co. owns about 400 office buildings, 40 retail centers, 90 apartment communities, two hotels, five marinas and three golf clubs.

"My goal is for this funding to help close the achievement gap and truly make a difference by providing resources that otherwise would not be available," Bren said in a written statement reported by The Times.

THINK Together, which has a $25 million annual budget, already operates in 13 Santa Ana schools. The funding will allow the program to expand to each of the 36 grade schools in Santa Ana Unified School District, schools Superintendent Jane Russo told The Times. Programs in Los Angeles County are just beginning.

$8.5 Million gift featured in the news

Randy Barth is honored as one of OC Metro's HOT 25

Randy Barth
Nonprofit prophet
CEO and founder, THINK Together
AGE: 40
RESIDENCE: Santa Ana
FAMILY: Married, 2 children


“I have become much more thoughtful about recycling and reusing, the use of water and incorporating more environmentally sensitive materials.”


Randy Barth is passion personified. This former businessman started THINK Together in 1994. Revenues for the program have grown from $3 million to an expected $25 million by the end of fiscal year ’07. Today, the program serves more than 20,000 students daily in 4 counties.

It all started after a gang shooting occurred in Costa Mesa’s Shalimar neighborhood. Together with church leaders, Barth met with Shalimar mothers who organized in response to the violence. At those meetings, Barth learned that what the children needed was a safe, quiet place to go after school to get tutoring and moral support.

Thirteen years later, THINK Together is a bustling after-school provider to more than 180 sites in Orange, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

THINK stands for Teaching, Helping, Inspiring and Nurturing Kids. For Barth, this nonprofit organization is both a career highlight and a life cause wrapped into one.

One might look at the sincere largess of Barth and wonder how he does it – especially in the nonprofit world, where fundraising can often be an uphill battle. While some might call Barth’s forthright approach to building this organization a flaw, others would call it a high-voltage trait required to be successful in community service.

Either way, Barth is doing something right, having seen more than 100 THINK Together Shalimar students go on to college, many of whom graduated.

Keeping the momentum going, Barth is working on ways to expand the program into other areas.

—JUDY ASMAN, OC metro

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Randy Barth Honored in Daily Pilot 103 Most Influential

The founder of the nonprofit after school program THINK Together, Randy Barth has dedicated himself to helping local kids from low-income families since starting the Shalimar Learning Center in 1994.

The learning center was an answer to the pleas of mothers after a gang-related shooting in west Costa Mesa. Barth brought together two churches and a community group to start a learning center where children could get tutoring and support. The successful program was credited with transforming the neighborhood. Barth founded THINK Together in 1997. Today, the program has learning centers across Orange County dedicated to helping children who are learning English or living below the poverty line.

—Brianna Bailey, Daily Pilot

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THINK Together program at YES

Nurturing Kids Together. This after school program was created to help increase student achievement, student test scores, and student attendance. The program consists of a three hour after school design, which includes snack time, homework time, physical activity, and academic enrichment. The THINK Together program runs five days a week, Monday through Friday, including minimum days. THINK Together is funded by California grant monies and there is no charge for enrollment.

The THINK Together program at Yucaipa Elementary School looks like this. Students come to the program each and every school day. They receive a healthy snack and then participate in a rotation of activities. Students receive an additional hour of instruction, often delivered by teachers from that same school. Students receive help with their homework for about an hour through a combination of paid staff and volunteer tutors. Students then get an hour of exercise through a combination of structured activities and free play. A typical site will serve between 70 and 150 students per day.

The THINK Together mission is to provide a high quality after school program for young students. They offer a variety of academically-oriented after school programs, designed to give all students a chance at academic success.

The teachers in the program are loving and caring individuals who have the students' best interest in mind. The program is an integral part of our after school activities at Yucaipa Elementary. The students enjoy the vast array of activities, and receive the help they need in order to complete the homework required of them for the following day.

In 2006, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that Proposition 49, the After School Education and Safety Initiative, passed by voters in 2002 would be fully funded. The state published a list of 1,400 schools that would be high priority to receive these funds. More than 600 of these schools were in either the eastern portion of Los Angeles County or along the corridor encompassing the 60 Freeway and the 10 Freeway east of Los Angeles and out through the Inland Empire.

THINK Together expanded out of Orange County and established three regional offices to serve many of these high-need schools. Today, THINK Together operates comprehensive after school programs at more than 170 school and community sites across 19 different school districts.

THINK Together has more than 1,000 employees serving more than 20,000 students per year.

THINK Together combines business and education professionals into a unique social enterprise that partners with schools and the private sector to provide extended learning days and expanded learning opportunities for students regardless of race, creed or socio-economic condition.

We believe it is imperative that communities partner with schools to provide additional support for their students, and THINK Together is creating the vehicle to do just that.

For further information or questions, visit the website at www.thinktogether.org or contact Marilyn Hauck, THINK Together site coordinator at 380-2455 yucaipa@thinktogether.org.

By Elizabeth Gonzalez - Chronister, Ed.D
Principal, Yucaipa Elementary School
Yucaipa-Calimesa News Mirror

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THINK Together's monumental growth is discussed in the Orange County Business Journal

By Jessica C. Lee

A nonprofit that serves kids is expanding thanks to some big names in Orange County and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Santa Ana-based Think Together, a provider of free after-school tutoring services to kids in poor areas, has seen its revenue go from $4 million last year to about $25 million this year, according to Chief Executive Randy Barth.

2002’s Proposition 49, the After School Education and Safety Act spearheaded by Schwarzenegger before he became governor, is behind the gain.

Think Together—the “think” stands for teaching, helping, inspiring and nurturing kids—also has seen its share of support from businesses.

The Irvine Company’s Don Bren alone has given $1.5 million to the group.

“When we started out, we were privately funded,” Barth said. “Most of our funding came from corporate donors in Orange County and wealthy individuals. The government funds are helping us grow even faster now.”

	Irvine Company donation: gave $1 million last year, total of $1.5 million so far

Think Together is one of the few nonprofits to balance government funds and corporate and private donations, according to Betsy Densmore, vice president of the Social Enterprise Institute, an Irvine-based consulting company that works with nonprofits.

“Think Together has grown so much in such a short amount of time that they truly are an anomaly,” she said. “They’ve shown a strong commitment to patiently working with the public and private sector, and it’s really paying off.”

Proposition 49 has given Think Together a big boost. Before, the nonprofit had tutoring programs at 25 schools in Orange and Los Angeles counties. Now—seven months after getting funding—it’s offering after-school programs at more than 180 schools in Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Proposition 49 gives Think Together $112,500 for each elementary school it works at, and $150,000 per middle school. The money is helping the group to expand its after-school academic support and homework help programs for at-risk youth from poor areas.

The group’s hired about 1,200 part-time and full-time workers since November. Think Together, which started in 1994, counts about 50 people at its 12,000-square-foot headquarters, according to Barth.

It expects $25 million in revenue this year. That’s up from $4.5 million last year, according to the Business Journal’s most recent list of local nonprofits.

“Last year we had a $3 million to $4 million cash budget,” Barth said. “It’s amazing to see how much we’ve grown in such a short period of time.”

The nonprofit’s also planning to buy the entire 25,000-square-foot-building that houses its headquarters, according to Barth.

Think Together always has had support from local companies and individuals, Barth said.

The list of donors includes some big corporate names:

• Bank of America Corp.’s local operations have given Think Together $200,000.

• Newport Beach-based Pacific Life Insurance Co. has given $175,000 through its Pacific Life Foundation.

• Wells Fargo & Co.’s Orange County operations have given $35,000.

• Disk drive maker Western Digital Corp. in Lake Forest gave $25,000, while Newport Beach-based Conexant Systems Inc. donated $15,000.

• Red Mountain Retail Group of Santa Ana has given $25,000.

Not to mention private contributions, including $100,000 from Bill Podlich, cofounder of Newport Beach’s Pacific Investment Management Co., $100,000 from Ranney Draper, chairman of Newport Beach-based Spring Creek Investors LLC, and $50,000 from Knott’s Berry Farm heiress Marion Knott.

The Irvine Co.’s been working with Think Together for the past 10 years, according to Sat Tamaribuchi, vice president of environmental affairs.

“We put a high priority in education at the company and we donate because this program helps children succeed in school,” Tamaribuchi said. “It’s fulfilling to know that you’re helping at-risk children who ordinarily wouldn’t have an opportunity to finish high school and go onto college.”

Local Funding

Tamaribuchi is one of Think Together’s founding board members. He said the Irvine Co. has helped the nonprofit get state and federal funding and has tried to attract other corporate donors.

Think Together’s board meetings have been held at the Irvine Co.’s offices during the years, he said.

Tamaribuchi said he and the company plan to continue supporting Think Together. They’d even like to see the group expand and reach out to high school students in the near future, he said.

“I’m glad that they could take our grant and make it a catalyst for their growth and more funding from the private and public sectors,” said Kim Burdick, market president for Bank of America Orange County.

The bank has partnered with Think Together for the past two years, he said.

“Their smart and strategic use of grant money is a model for other nonprofits,” Burdick said.

The Pacific Life Foundation has supported the group since 1999, said Michele Myszka, Pacific Life Foundation’s vice president. One of the foundation’s first grants was used to fund Think Together’s first and full-time development director position, she said.

“The agency’s staff, volunteers, and especially Randy Barth have created an exceptional academic after-school program that has positively changed the future of the participants by helping them do well in school,” Myszka said.

Think Together’s cause could help local businesses cope with the difficulty of finding educated workers in the future, Social Enterprise’s Densmore said.

“It’s smart for companies to work with (Think Together) because they’re contributing to a program that could help grow an educated workforce, which could help them find future employees,” she said. “It really provides a win-win situation for everybody.”

The biggest challenge for Think Together could be coping with its recent growth while maintaining the quality of its service, Densmore said.

Think Together’s ability to handle its growth could ultimately boil down to finding the right workers and volunteers, she said.

Think Together targets schools in poor areas or those that don’t have money to provide math, English and other tutoring services. Often times, the nonprofit is approached by schools, Barth said.

UC Irvine, Fullerton Volunteers

The group works closely with local universities such as the University of California, Irvine, and California State University, Fullerton, to find volunteers and workers, Barth said.

A big chunk of its volunteers are studying to become social workers or teachers, he said. Many of them become part-time and full-time workers after they graduate, he said.

Cal State Fullerton has more than 150 students volunteer at the nonprofit every year through work-study programs and related course work, according to Jeannie Kim-Han, director of the Center for Internships and Service-Learning.

UC Irvine supplies about 1,000 student volunteers every year, Barth said.

Working with universities gives Barth potential workers for the future, he said.

“Many of these students are recruited for paid positions,” Barth said.

Some of the schools’ teachers also are tapped, he said.

Part-time workers earn $11 to $13 an hour. Full-time site coordinators—those who manage programs at schools in all regions—can make $32,500 to $35,000. Area supervisors, who oversee regions—such as Los Angeles or Orange County—make $40,000 to $60,000 per year. Its professional staff can make more than $60,000 a year depending on their educational background and experience.

The nonprofit’s also planning to start a high school tutoring service and launch for-profit after-school programs in wealthier school districts, Barth said.

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Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger talks about the importance of after school programs

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THINK Together Expands Dramatically

Back in March of 2006, just a short year ago, we opened our newsletter with the alert “Prop 49 is coming.”  At the time it may have seemed a distant prospect to some, but we are now wrapping up the Prop 49 implementation, and as far as we can tell, this has been the largest implementation of after school programs by a single year by a single provider, in the history of the U.S. 

The numbers are staggering.  As recently as November of 2006 THINK Together was operating programs in 25 sites in Orange and Los Angeles counties.  Less than 5 months later we now operate over 180 sites across Southern California, in Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties, stretching from San Juan Capistrano to Duarte, and from Little Lake (Santa Fe Springs) to Banning.  (See our map on the locations page.)  This required us to hire 1200 employees in just over 90 days, and to quickly build the educational, technological, and administrative infrastructure to support this growth.  Our growth has also provided us with additional resources to advance our commitment to program quality and development, so that we remain on the cutting edge of after school education.

So what does this all mean?  The key number that gives meaning to this growth story, is that we now serve over 20,000 students on a daily basis, providing a safe place for these students to learn and grow; students like Jose and Adriana.  Jose recently explained his behavior problems by saying its “because everyone expects me to” (act this way).  Like so many others, with some positive encouragement Jose is making dramatic improvements in both his academic work and behavior.  During a recent show and tell, Adriana became emotional as she shared a drawing her brother did for her.  She hasn’t seen him in a long time because he has been in jail.  Her story opened the door for many other students to connect with her and share about challenges they have been facing at home. 

This is what motivates all of us here at THINK Together – the individual stories of kids whose lives’ have changed.  Many heads and hands were required to pull off this monumental implementation, and it was not always easy.  But we can now take a step back and remember that it is for these 20,000 kids, each with their own compelling stories of challenge and possibility, that all this effort took place.  As we look for new kids to serve and new ways to serve them, their personal struggles and hopes will be the guiding force behind our efforts.