"In the years since KIPP Philadelphia Schools (KPS) opened our first middle school in 2003, we have learned much about how far behind our students from the underserved neighborhoods of North and West Philadelphia really are when they come to us in the fifth grade.  We began to ask ourselves--what if we started working with these students and families before the fifth grade?  The partnership between the M. Night Shyamalan Foundation and  KPS  will aid in the start-up of our first three KIPP Philadelphia Elementary Schools in 2010, 2011, and 2012.  By opening these new elementary schools we believe our students will grow up without having to experience that devastating achievement gap."

The mission of KIPP Philadelphia Schools is to develop the character, knowledge, and skills of our students so they will succeed in college, giving them the freedom to shape their futures and positively affect their communities.

“The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is honored to partner with the M. Night Shyamalan Foundation to provide nutritious mid-day meals for hundreds of young children attending grade school in northern Kenya. The school lunch program draws children to school and provides the energy they need to study. The mid-day maize meal is often the only sustenance children receive and during the 2009 drought proved to be the difference between malnourishment and good health. Lewa is grateful to the M. Night Shyamalan Foundation for their interest in and support of our work with local communities."

Founded in 1995, the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy spans 62,000 acres and serves as a catalyst for conservation across northern Kenya. Lewa holds over 10% of Kenya’s black rhino population and the world’s largest single population of Grevy’s zebras.  Through the protection and management of endangered species, the initiation and support of community conservation and development programs, and the education of neighboring areas in the value of wildlife, Lewa has become Kenya's leading model for wildlife conservation, leading destination for low impact conservation tourism, and leading catalyst for conservation and its direct benefits for communities, across the  region. The Conservancy is also home to the Northern Rangelands Trust, an innovative partnership with numerous communities to the North who have given over 3 million acres over to wildlife conservation.

To learn more about Lewa, click here.

Lightmaker is a professional services agency that has been creating award-winning interactive experiences across the world since 1997.

Lightmaker's goal is to bring inspiration and innovation to every user. They have revolutionized how clients engage with ideas and information on the internet. Creating user-friendly interfaces means designing systems that take into account all of the quirks and qualities that make us human. With a deep understanding of user behavior, Lightmaker's design teams are able to make decisions based upon deep behavioral knowledge, which anticipates a user's wants and needs. The result is intuitive interfaces that make online transactions easy and fulfilling.

Lightmaker works with the world's leading organization in a range of markets, which gives them a unique insight and ability to combine knowledge from different sectors. Names like: Adobe, Microsoft, IBM, EDS, Electronic Arts, PlayStation, Sony Entertainment, Sony Pictures, NHS Blood and Transfusion, IKEA, JK Rowling, David Beckham, Robbie Williams, BBC, ITV, Warner, Orlando Magic and Manchester United are just a few of their ongoing clients.

NIWCYD aims to be an instrument of tribal and rural development through the process of complete empowerment of the beneficiaries which will render them self sufficient, thereby reducing or eliminating their dependence on external support for any issue or difficulty they may face.

Institutional objectives:

The guiding philosophy of NIWCYD’s efforts has been to utilize natural resources - real and potential, those are available locally and enable sustainable development and empower the community based organizations to fight for the local issues to safeguard the rights of the poor and the tribal.

"The M. Night Shyamalan foundation has provided funds for us to purchase vitamins to give to the students at our local primary school, where our children attend. This school is underfunded and understaff wtih 450 children and 10 teachers. In 2005 we initiated a hot lunch program for the students: many of whom walk an hour or more to attend school. For many this is their only meal of the day. School attendance and performace improved dramatically with this dailty vitamin and hot lunch program.  Vitamins are essential for normal growth and development in children. Many of these children suffer from malnutrition which can lead to poor health, weak immune systems and stunted growth both physically and mentally. we are grateful for the grants from the MNS Foundation because now our students radiate energy and curiosity. We see hope in their eyes and their smiles, hear it in their voices when they ask questions and when they sing."

The Tanzanian Children's Fund is a 501(c)3 whose mission is to aid orphaned and vulnerable children in Tanzania. They have built an orphanage, the Rift Valley Children's Village, in a remote village in Northern Tanzania and have 41 orphans living with them. When they finish contstruction at the end of December 2008, they will have 67 orphans living with them.

"Teach For America proudly partners with the M. Night Shyamalan Foundation as we work towards our mission of providing every child in our region with an excellent education. In part because of the Foundation's support, we now have over 300 corps members serving as teachers across Philadelphia in low-income underperforming classrooms. These corps members are leading their students in life-changing academic progress during their years in the classroom. They are working together with over 700 alumni of our program in the Greater Philadelphia area to close the achievement gap between low-income students and their more affluent peers. These alumni work from within and outside classrooms and schools and from all sectors to garner resources and support for educational equity."

Teach For America aims to end educational inequity-the reality that in our country, where a child is born determines his or her educational outcomes and life prospects. We are working with a great sense of urgency to build the movement to eliminate educational inequity by enlisting our nation's most promising future leaders in the effort. Our vision is that one day, all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education.

The Samburu Project is a community-based, grassroots organization collaborating with the people of the Samburu tribe in Northern Kenya to provide clean, safe drinking water through well drilling to communities as a foundation to further development. Once wells are established, The Samburu Project continues working with well communities to help guide and/or support further development efforts.

Founded in 2005, The Samburu Project is a US-based non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that collaborates with communities in developing countries to enhance men, women and children's daily lives by providing resources that address immediate needs and promote long-term sustainability and self-sufficiency, while supporting cultural integrity. The Samburu Project's primary focus is the Samburu region of Kenya. The Samburu Project Kenya operates as a CBO in Wamba, Samburu, Kenya and a NGO in Kenya.

The Valentino Achak Deng Foundation is a US-based nonprofit organization working to increase access to education in post-conflict Southern Sudan by building schools, libraries, teacher-training institutes, and community centers. Established by Valentino Deng and Dave Eggers after the publication of What Is the What, the Foundation's first major project is the construction and operation of a 15-structure educational complex in Valentino's hometown of Marial Bai, Southern Sudan. The Marial Bai Secondary School opened in May 2009, and is the first high school in the entire region.