New Community Foundation, Inc.
New Community Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization
Our Vision:
Building strong, resilient communities where every individual, regardless of circumstances, has access to quality education, equitable support, and opportunities to thrive in learning, family life, and personal growth. We envision vibrant communities where children, families, and educators grow together, creating culturally vibrant pathways to learning, healing, and opportunity for every community member.
Our Mission:
New Community Foundation, Inc. is committed to advancing educational equity and family well-being across diverse communities. We provide inclusive academic support for youth, youth-adult, and adult learners, empower families of students with exceptional needs, and conduct community-based research that informs civic engagement, policy, and practice. Through partnerships, and restorative programs in literacy, parenting, anger management, and batterer intervention, we foster accountability, emotional growth and regulation, and healthier family relationships strengthening the fabric and social capital of our communities. We believe strong families and public schools build strong communities. We are working to ensure every learner, from early childhood through adulthood, has access to compassionate educational support and safe nurturing environments. Together, we can strengthen community resilience, open doors to culturally responsive learning, and help families to thrive.
Cultivating Educators:
NCF encourages younger community members from varied backgrounds and men of diverse cultural orientations to consider the teaching profession as a career. Our efforts to date have focused on urban communities across Los Angeles County. The teaching profession provides a pathway for young community members to meaningfully contribute to their neighborhood in a positive way while providing tangible mentoring and role modeling for children and youth. Education provides varied entry position pathways that offer individual community members opportunities for professional growth, continued education, and community uplift.
Educational Research:
NCF has conducted educational research focusing on the impact of school closures and the implications for community member access to socially valued resources and services. Helping urban community members understand the importance of maintaining local control of educational institutions in their neighborhoods, and the role schools play in brokering service delivery on site and through referral is essential to ensuring access to resources and services to support education, well-being, educational trajectory, resilience, and economic opportunities. Informing the awareness of community members regarding services and resources brokered by schools helps to ensure service delivery disruption is mitigated when school closures occur. Our intent is to encourage community support of students and families directly impacted by school closures as community members navigate unstable educational environments.
Brief Biography
Gary Pierson, Ph.D. , is an urban educational leader and scholar practitioner with over 25 years of experience in public education, special education, and community-based consulting. His research and practice focus on K-12 school closures and consolidations, and the implications for community access to socially valued resources and services, and recruitment and retention of culturally diverse men as teaching professionals. Dr. Pierson’s work is grounded in Critical Race, Spatial Justice, and Social Capital Theories. As the founder of New Community Foundation, Inc., he leads initiatives that advance educational equity, student leadership, family and community well-being, civic engagement, and equitable social opportunities for historically marginalized communities.
Our Work Continues
Past Activities
New Community Foundation (NCF) was formed in 2024 to continue the work of New Community Developmental and Educational Foundation, Inc. founded in 2000. NCF has provided educational support services for K-12 students, college students, youth-adults and adults. Our services have included tutoring in core subjects (e.g., Math, English Language Arts, History, and Science), and development of soft skills. Soft skills include personal attributes, social abilities, and communication skills enabling individuals to interact effectively and harmoniously with others. Unlike technical or “hard “ skills, which are job-specific and often measurable, soft skills are related to how a person works, communicates, and engages in the workplace, social settings, and community. Soft skills may include: communication (exchanging information, ideas, and emotions through verbal, non-verbal, and visual channels to create shared understanding), teamwork and collaboration, problem-solving, critical thinking, adaptability and flexibility, leadership, emotional intelligence (self-awareness, empathy, self-regulation), time management, conflict resolution, work ethic and reliability, and interpersonal skills. Soft skills are important in many work settings and professions contributing to a positive work environment, enhanced productivity, and supporting collaborative, creative and effective teams.
Special Education Consulting
NCF provides consulting services for families with a child or children that may have special needs as the family considers a 504 plan or assessment for special education services. If their child has been assessed and a primary and secondary disability identified, NCF works with the family and school staff to ensure parents are aware of their rights, that appropriate accommodations (and modifications if necessary) are in place, and that service providers are acting in accordance with the student’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP).