Making Waves Today

Making Waves Foundation

The Making Waves foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1989 that serves as the umbrella group responsible for management and strategic planning, oversight, development, and external affairs across all Making Waves initiatives.

The foundation has focused increasingly on expanding the reach of Making Waves to ensure that more young people in the Bay Area can benefit from its programs and services. It is also working to ensure that other communities nationwide can adopt its model or strategic approach, learn from its work, and expand public-private partnerships that make student success more possible for broader range of students.

Making Waves education program

The Making Waves Education Program has grown dramatically since its inception in 1989. Under the leadership of Executive Director Glenn W. Holsclaw, our current model now serves nearly 1,000 students and their families selected from 27 public elementary schools in Richmond and San Francisco. From our origins as an after-school tutoring and teaching program, we’ve evolved into a comprehensive, year-round educational support program.

Our tremendous success is predicated on a holistic approach that includes an array of services beyond our rigorous academic training, among them transportation, meals, mental health services, parent education, financial aid and placement counseling, college visits, and scholarships. This approach currently allows more than 320 of our eighth through twelfth graders to attend parochial and independent middle and high schools.

Middle School Program (5th-8th Grade)

Skilled tutors, led by a credentialed teacher, lead small groups in reading, writing, vocabulary development, and study skills for eight to 12 hours per week beyond the standard school day. Compulsory tutoring sessions are held twice weekly and on Saturdays. Students who require additional help are also able to take advantage of academic support throughout the week with access to fully equipped computer labs and resource libraries.

High School Program (9th-12th Grade)

At the secondary level, Wave-Makers receive tutoring in all of their courses whenever they need it, ranging from three to 13 hours per week. Regular meetings with teachers, counselors and tutors give students the support they need to reach their goals. Our empowerment programs in reading, writing, and math help students refine their skills and prepare them to perform at the college level. Beginning in ninth grade, our students receive test preparation for the SAT and ACT, as well as college counseling services.

Most of our high school students attend top independent and parochial schools, such as Saint Ignatius and Lick-Wilmerding in San Francisco, The Branson School and Marin Academy in Marin County, and College Preparatory and Saint Mary’s in the East Bay.

Making Waves Academy

Founder & Chair John H. Scully and Executive Director Glenn W. Holsclaw

In 2007, we expanded the reach of our vision by opening the Making Waves Academy public charter school, grades 5-8, in Richmond. The Upper School, grades 9-12, will open in the Fall of 2012 (Information on the Head of the Upper School). The Academy, open by lottery to students from Title I schools, works in collaboration with Making Waves Education Program to ensure student success. In our experience, the middle school years are critical to a student’s future and often foretell who will attend college.

College and Alumni program

We have always been dedicated to getting students not just to college, but through it. More than 95 percent of Wave-Makers are the first in their families to go to college, so our extensive support services, delivered through Making Waves Education Program, shepherd them through the higher education maze. We provide admission, housing and financial aid counseling, college tours, advice on the selection of courses and majors, ongoing academic and social mentoring, and tuition support.