Our Model

Who we are

Greater Than seeks to transform public education for underrepresented and historically excluded students by providing them with individualized holistic supports from pre-K through high school and beyond to ensure they can overcome systemic barriers to thrive in school, college, and career.

Our Approach

We view every aspect of our work through the lens of racial equity which guides our decision-making, organization relationships, policies, and practices.

It is the lens that leads us to hold parents and primary caregivers as the central stakeholders of our work.

In order to best serve the changing needs of families and students, we must prioritize responsiveness and adaptability, changing our approach quickly and frequently.

This can only be accomplished through a combination of partnerships and direct service, leveraging the expertise and resources of other organizations alongside our own.

Flexibility and Adaptability Set Us Apart

The Three Pillars of our Work

Our programs aim to advance a racially just learning environment because equitable education is a right.

We are intent on moving from a system of holding power over community to holding power with community.

We are committed to racial equity and the restructuring of systems that create inequities for marginalized individuals.

Tiered Support Model

**Tier I supports are whole-school supports for every student.** This includes teacher training and resources, developing a culture of college and career, and supporting key school events and programs such as summer school.

**Tier II supports are small group supports that meet the needs of students with shared barriers.** Examples include after-school math skills programs, social emotional skill building workshops, and classroom-based literacy support.
**Tier III supports are highly individualized for students who are critically behind.** These supports include home-visits, individualized intervention plans, and mentoring.

Our programmatic supports include early learning, K-12 academics, post-secondary success, and successful entry into career. We continuously work to expand our partnerships and relationships to provide robust support services across all points of the education continuum.

Equity Statement

We believe that cultural, institutional, and individual racism creates disparities and barriers that are neither fair nor equitable.

We are committed to advancing racial equity as a foundational element of all aspects of our work and with all of our stakeholders. In addition to racism, we recognize that ALL other forms of bias must also be addressed in order to create a more just and equitable society.

We remain steadfast in our commitment to comprehensive community partnerships to help close the racialized opportunity gap in our schools and colleges. We strive to create a truly equitable organization: one where students, families, and communities are welcomed and supported, where their faces, voices, and experiences are reflected and valued.

We listen and respond with great care and intentionality to the students and families with whom we partner. We consistently analyze our organizational commitment to equity and inclusion as expressed through our policies and practices, our workforce and board composition, and engagement of students and families as central guides of our work. We are committed to collaborating with other organizations towards advancing equity for all.

Our History

Beginning in 1990, our organization delivered programming as the Oregon chapter of the nationally-affiliated non-profit I Have a Dream, and we’re proud of what we were able to accomplish through our class-based model.

In 2010 we shifted to our whole school model and began serving Alder Elementary students throughout their educational paths. In 2018, to better reflect our new model, we changed our name to Greater Than.

In 2020 Greater Than expanded to a second site at Lincoln Street Elementary School in Hillsboro.