Salesforce supports leadership in schools

Salesforce.org, the philanthropic arm of the San Francisco cloud computing company, is doling out its largest grant to an education nonprofit, giving $2 million to New Leaders to help train principals and teachers.

The funding is something of a departure for Salesforce, which had focused its education dollars on improving technology or expanding programs.

San Francisco and Oakland have been the biggest recipients, with Salesforce.org funding so far exceeding $50 million — with the money used to expand computer science coursework, for example, or improve math education.

The grant to New Leaders is focused on boosting the skills of thousands of principals, teacher coaches and teachers across the country.

“I feel this is the culmination of us taking it to the next level,” said Ebony Frelix, chief philanthropy officer at Salesforce.org. “It’s important to invest in the human resources that are going into the schools.”

New Leaders, headquartered in New York, offers support and on-site training for school leaders — real-time coaching — to ensure principals and other supervisors inspire and guide those working with children. Oakland and Richmond are among the 30 communities with New Leaders training programs.

“We all know that leadership matters,” said Jean Desravines, CEO of New Leaders. “It matters in corporations, government and the military. Schools are no different.”

The Salesforce.org grant will allow the organization to expand its reach, Desravines said.

“Outstanding leadership is absolutely essential for creating schools in which teachers and students can grow, thrive and reach their full potential,” he said in a statement.

Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker