Return on investment: Why the co-founder of tech giant Dropbox just donated $500K to Blue Valley schools
January 21, 2022 | Startland News Staff
Blue Valley schools, teachers, and students are expected to benefit greatly from a newly announced fund launched by the homegrown Johnson County tech entrepreneur who later co-founded the cloud storage giant Dropbox.
Arash Ferdowsi, a 2004 graduate of Blue Valley Northwest High School, has put up $500,000 to launch the Arash Ferdowsi Fund, which benefits the Blue Valley Educational Foundation, the organization announced Friday.
“Our schools are essential to the future of our community and our local economy,” Ferdowsi said in a release, marking the largest-ever donation to the foundation.
“I am proud to call Blue Valley my home and feel fortunate that my educational foundation was built through the support of my Blue Valley teachers and schools.”
The foundation will in December be able to begin allocating money from the fund to support classroom and district grants. It’s been founded with the hope it will grow over time, ensuring grants for teachers and schools are sustained well into the future.
Joy Ginsburg, Blue Valley Education Foundation
“We hope that Arash’s generous donation and unique fund structure inspires more leaders in our community to contribute to Blue Valley Schools,” added Joy Ginsburg, executive director of the Blue Valley Educational Foundation.
“It is the priority of the Blue Valley Educational Foundation to support exceptional educational opportunities for our students — over and above what is possible with state funding alone,” she continued, emphasizing the importance of Ferdowsi’s gift.
“It is a very proud moment for a Blue Valley alumnus to come back and generously support the school system where he was educated. The impact Arash’s teachers made on him is now being returned in his support for our schools.”
Click here to learn more about the Blue Valley Educational Foundation or to make a gift of your own.
An Iranian immigrant, Ferdowsi’s father, Gholam, moved him and his family to Overland Park in the early 1990s specifically so he could attend school in the Blue Valley district, the foundation noted.
“Not only was the educational experience everything they had hoped for, the family also always appreciated the kindness and inclusivity of our community,” they said, noting Ferdowsi spent much of his youth volunteering time and donating money to Literacy Kansas City in support of its mission to achieve literacy for all.
Upon his graduation from the school system, where he was first in his class, Ferdowsi attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he met Drew Houston. The pair founded San Francisco-based Dropbox in 2007.
Ferdowsi left the company in the spring of 2020.
This story is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.
For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect at www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn
Featured Business
2022 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
‘More than a thrift store’: Goodwill’s efforts to close digital divide sell an expanded mission — upskilling workers
Editor’s note: The following is the first in a series of stories focused on digital inclusion efforts in Kansas City, and is presented by Google Fiber. Ron Carr’s retirement made him restless, he shared. Wanting to be a valuable player in Kansas City’s economy once again, Carr enrolled in Goodwill’s Digital Skills Training program. “With…
Thrive Homes builds ‘life-changing’ independence for those struggling with mobility, aging in place
The impact of Thrive Homes is as simple as it is profound, said Christian Hill, whose startup taps into state and federal health funds to provide timely home modifications for residents with disabilities and accessibility issues. The Overland Park-based company makes it possible for people with certain health conditions — and those who are experiencing…
She started by getting Black art into Black spaces; now Natasha Ria El-Scari wants all of KC to know what they’ve been missing
A Renaissance woman, Natasha Ria El-Scari — gallerist, curator, poet, spoken word performer, educator, and life coach — has surrounded herself with art throughout her life. However, as the Kansas City native watched her hometown’s art scene flourish and thrive, she noticed not everyone was included. “As the city started to change, and the Crossroads…
Travel on tap: How a KC couple built a self-serve port for international wine lovers north of the river
Grab your wine passport, Russ Johnson said, because this self-serve wine bar allows customers to taste the world one sip at a time. And the technology that makes the business possible? Johnson — a software developer-turned-entrepreneur — built it himself. “Our brand is really focused on going on a vacation and having this world experience —…