At Rainier Scholars, we’re fortunate to work with many amazing partners who share our commitment to transforming educational opportunities for students of color. But few partnerships run as deep—or have been as transformative—as our relationship with Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences (SAAS).
This year marks a significant milestone in our collaboration as SAAS opens its doors to host the Academic Enrichment Phase (AEP) on their beautiful campus for our Seattle scholars. We recently sat down with co-heads of school Rob Phillips and Giselle Furlonge to learn more about this partnership and what it means to both organizations.
Day 1 Partners
The story of our partnership with SAAS begins in the early days of Rainier Scholars. Rob received a call from Ronnie Cunningham, an educational psychologist and early staff member at Rainier Scholars, in the early 2000s. After meeting a few of our scholars, Rob immediately knew he wanted to make a home for them at SAAS.
That first connection led to two students from our inaugural cohort attending SAAS the following year—including Tisa McElroy, who later became a SAAS board member and now works at Boeing.
“The relationship has been deep for a very, very long time, almost since day one,” Rob said. “Lots of SAAS faculty members have taught in the Rainier Scholars Program or worked at Rainier Scholars. Rainier Scholars faculty members have come and taught and worked here. They’ve advised and informed how we think about kids in our shared community.”
This deep interconnection has created something special. As Rob puts it: “In some ways, we don’t even really think of it as two separate organizations. We think of it as a part of a family. We’ve been working together for a really long time with lots of crossovers.”
Shared Commitment to Access and Opportunity
For Giselle, who joined SAAS seven years ago, the partnership holds personal meaning. Originally from the East Coast, Giselle attended independent schools through the Stepping Stone Foundation, an access program similar to Rainier Scholars.
“The role that access programs—like Stepping Stone, Prep for Prep, And Prep 9—play within the ecosystem of an independent school is really personal for me,” Giselle said. “It’s not just about access. Different kinds of kids from different communities transform us as a school. They shape who we are as a community.”
This perspective has helped SAAS understand that their partnership with Rainier Scholars isn’t just about providing space—it’s about defining who they are as a school community.
“That commitment to access is deep and not perfunctory or performative. That level of partnership is really important to how we define community here,” Giselle said.
When Partnership Means “Of Course, Yes”
When we approached SAAS about hosting our Academic Enrichment Phase, their response was immediate and enthusiastic.
“It was the shortest deliberation ever,” Rob laughed. “We knew immediately that we wanted to figure out how to do it.”
Giselle’s response was even more succinct: “That’s a no brainer.”
This immediate ‘yes’ reflects SAAS’s broader philosophy about community access. As Rob explained: “We’ve had the good fortune to build this incredible campus. And the question has always been, how do we make it more accessible to community members and key partners?”
Shared Values
SAAS didn’t just provide space. They also arranged for our scholars to receive breakfast on Saturday mornings—a gesture that speaks to their understanding of what students need to thrive.
“We think a lot about the things that kids need in order to learn, and food’s a big part of that,” Giselle said.
The decision to provide breakfast aligns with SAAS’s existing values—values that we share at Rainier Scholars. “There’s a whole bunch of kids getting here at 7:30 in the morning for breakfast, supported by our financial aid,” said Rob. “So, it was kind of an automatic assumption that we’d do this for Rainier Scholars too. Our thinking is that this isn’t a separate community coming and using our building. Rainier scholars is part of our community, and therefore our community benefits are also their benefits.”
Shared Vision
What makes this partnership so powerful is the alignment between our organizations’ values and approaches. Both Rainier Scholars and SAAS focus on making transformational changes rather than incremental adjustments.
As Rob put it, “Most independent schools are giving small scholarships to the upper middle class to fill seats. We’re going in the opposite direction; we’re going all in for families to change the trajectory of generational impact.”
Both organizations have also faced skeptics who doubted their missions were possible. “People said to Rainier Scholars, ‘you’re not going to be able to carve out a foothold. People said to SAAS, ‘you’re never going to be able to survive as a school.’ We’ve both defied the limitations that people tried to put on us,” Rob said.
This shared experience of proving doubters wrong has created a special bond between our organizations.
Looking Toward the Future
As SAAS settles into their unified campus, both Giselle and Rob see this partnership as part of a broader vision for what schools can be in their communities.
“Who we want SAAS to be in this city is not a private school in a gated community up on a hill and an ivory tower. We want to be working in partnership with organizations to make this city better,” Giselle said. “We hope that these partnerships will continue, not just to enrich us and define us, but to actually change the trajectory of kids’ lives in Seattle and beyond.”
Rob shares this ambitious vision: “Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could help the city rethink what’s possible for our kids in our community?”
Thank You, SAAS
“What makes this partnership truly special is the mutual respect and trust between our organizations,” said Eddie Lincoln, CEO of Rainier Scholars. “We’re so grateful to have found such incredible partners. We consider ourselves lucky to be part of the fabric of Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences and their work to contribute boldly to a changing world.”
Giselle couldn’t agree more. “We find not just common ground, but fellowship with organizations that put kids first, and that are persistent about putting kids first, and that’s what I feel with Rainier Scholars.”
As we begin this new chapter where our Academic Enrichment Phase programs are hosted at SAAS, we’re filled with gratitude for partners who don’t just support our mission—they live it alongside us. Rob and Giselle, thank you for opening your doors, your hearts, and your community to our scholars. Thank you for seeing our partnership not as two separate organizations working together, but as a family.
Here’s to continued collaboration, shared success, and the amazing things we can accomplish when we put kids first, together.