Archived // Philanthropist Spotlight

Mike McGalliard: Making It Count
By: Mimi Makabi

Throughout his career, Mike McGalliard’s dedication and efforts have always stemmed from his strong belief in uniting our schools and communities. He has developed extensive fundraising relationships with colleges, foundations, and corporations across the country, including Wells Fargo, The Fox Group and a number of influential members of the Entertainment Industry.
 
In fall of 2007, Mentor LA and LAUSD partnered to launch West Adams Prep, a high school serving 2500 students in South Los Angeles—the first collaboration of its kind in the Los Angeles Unified School District. With a big smile, McGalliard proudly shares, “West Adams Prep is an entirely new model for public schools, and without question, will be the highest performing urban high school in Los Angeles. It has a first rate film school and is going to be one of the best in the country.” By cultivating significant partnerships in the community, MentorLA has developed the framework of an academic program second to none in Los Angeles. Still smiling, he adds, “We have filmmakers, writers, producers, directors, agents, all getting involved. They are getting hands on with designing the school’s curriculum and creating avenues where kids can learn from experiences out in the real world.”
 
A school built for and with the neighborhood, West Adamswill operate with a hybrid model of shared leadership, where the private and public sectors (MLA and LAUSD) will work as a team to ensure universal commitment to an uncompromising vision. McGalliard states, “The idea is that if a school as big as West Adams Prep is successful — since it’s at the center of a neighborhood, it’s going to pull together the entire neighborhood. Everyone is going to see it as a beacon, and it’s going to hold up everything. That’s how a great school works!”
 
In the end, Mike McGalliard’s dedication, resilience, and vision with Mentor LA is not just serving students, parents, teachers, principals, educational leaders, and schools—it is serving our communities, our people, our future leaders, and most importantly,  our city…the great City of Los Angeles.  McGalliard concludes, “As a child, I had ambition and always dreamt of doing something big. I wanted to be relevant.” With a big smile he adds, “I want the work we (at Mentor LA) are doing to be something that really matters. I don’t want to have to make up a place for myself in this world. I want the work to really, really matter.” Mike McGalliard has not only earned a special place for himself in this world, but also he has left a lasting footprint to follow. 

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