The Project is an initiative of the Capitol Hill Community Foundation. The CHCF raises money from the community and disperses it to local grant applicants. The Foundation also spearheads several local projects, of which the School Libraries Project is one.  The Foundation and the School Libraries Project are all-volunteer efforts. The Co-Chairs of the Project are Suzanne Wells and Todd Cymrot.

Project Partners
The District of Columbia Public School system committed a nearly one-to-one match for every dollar raised by the Capitol Hill Community Foundation.  Through a unique public/private partnership, DCPS worked closely with the Capitol Hill Community Foundation to manage the renovations and insure appropriate staffing of the new libraries;

The Washington Architectural Foundation (WAF), whose mission is to provide education and resources to build a better city, identified eight dedicated architects who worked on a pro bono basis to design the new library spaces for the School Libraries Project;

Regan Associates, a real estate development company with 32 years of experience, managed the construction phase of this initiative on a pro bono basis;

David Tracz, of OPX Global volunteered his services as Coordinating Architect for the project.

Global Engineering Solutions, an Engineering, Program Management and Construction Management firm, donated a significant portion of their services and oversaw the creation of electrical drawings for all of the libraries.

Dietze Construction Group, handled the physical renovation of our phase I schools: Ludlow Taylor, Stuart Hobson, and Brent Elementary. Diezte donated a significant portion of their fee towards the project.

Turner Construction handled the physical renovation of our phase II schools: Maury, Payne, Peabody, Tyler, Watkins. Turner donated a significant portion of their fee towards the project.

Catholic University Design Collaborative (CUAdc) was one of the pro-bono design firms who donated their time to the project.  In addition to designing the new Stuart Hobson library, students from CUAdc custom built the entire shelving infrastructure of this library.

A strong advisory team including Councilmember Sharon Ambrose, School Board Member Tommy Wells, Superintendent of DCPS Dr. Clifford B. Janey, Ed.D., Interim Director of the DC Public Library Francis J. Buckley Jr., and University of Maryland Professor and Coordinator of the School Library and Media Program, Delia Neuman;

Capitol Hill-based graphic designer, Phoebe Hunt-Smith, of Hunt-Smith Design provided ongoing pro-bono design services for the project;

Award-winning documentary film makers, Michael Skinner of Pendragwn Productions, and Robert Ryan and Tom Keith of Castle Media, documented this initiative from start to finish; and

A Volunteer committee of professional fundraisers, public relations, graphic design, and media experts donated their skills and expertise to the success of this project.

Corporate and Foundation Donors
Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6A
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
Arcana Foundation
Baker and Taylor
Capitol Hill Cluster School PTA
Capitol Hill Group Charities
Capitol Hill Restoration Society
Cathy Pfeiffer Foundation for Children’s Literacy
Citibank
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Community Foundation for the National Capitol Region
Fannie Mae
Fluor Enterprises
Fragers Hardware
Gillette
Hattie M. Strong Foundation
Heritage Foundation
Hogan & Hartson LLP
JASC Family Fund
John Janke Memorial Fund
Kiplinger
Meyer Foundation
Nathaniel A. Mesnikoff Foundation
National Capitol Bank of Washington
The PNC Financial Services Group
Patterson Family Private Foundation
Phillip Graham Fund
Riverby Books
UPS Foundation
Shannon and Luchs
Shiloh Foundation
Sprenger Lang Foundation
Stanton Development
Toyota
Tyler Social Fund
Ward 6 Committee for Citizens Services
Yarmouth Management Company

To date, the School Libraries Project has received donations from neighbors in excess of $350,000. These contributions represent an unprecedented community investment in the Capitol Hill neighborhood and our city’s public schools.