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Hi Foundation Friend,
Things have been a little chaotic over here. 2020 is outrageous. Unprecedented seems to be the word of the year, but I am going with outrageous. Just to give you a sense of what’s been happening in the past week alone:
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We received a thank you card from a family who lost their home in a fire but was able to stay in a local hotel for a week because of our donors.
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We did our first disbursement of classroom grants. Honestly, we are still navigating the process which has had to go completely digital, and that’s new to us.
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Heather Erickson, our Removing Barriers Coordinator, just reported that more than $20,000 has been allocated to families in financial need across the district.
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We’re waiting on final details of a donation of 16,872 books from Mascot Publishing coming all the way from Virginia. We plan to distribute them to school libraries, teacher classroom libraries, and directly to students.
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Somehow Computer Science Week snuck up on us and we weren’t able to get our usual plan out to schools and students. (I hope you were able to give Hour of Code a try, anyway!)
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And something that’s really on my heart – our first-ever Youth Advisory Board met last week. They shared that their classmates are lacking inspiration and motivation and are longing for connection.
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All that, plus the holiday season has a unique hiccup this year. Programs that usually offer support to families with toys and food are not able to due to COVID concerns. So, not only are families looking for help, but families who want to help can’t find a way to do so.
So, I am sitting at my desk, wondering how best to update you and keep doing all the work that is in front of us.
I’m sure you can relate.
I decided to write up a quick update about some of the things happening with the Foundation right now, which you’ll see below.
But because we are doing so much, I also want to invite you to a live Zoom Q&A with me next Monday at 3:30 pm. I’ll do my best to bring you up to speed on what I remember to report, and hopefully that things you will ask about, and I can fill in details.
CLASSROOM GRANTS
We just finalized and are distributing the latest round of grants to individual teachers. Grants are 100% funded by community donations and that sends a very strong message of support to these educators! Teachers are deeply grateful and want you to know what a difference these grants make – this year, especially.
Here are just a few of the grants that were recently funded:
Dual Monitors for Virtually Teaching Kindergartners at Frank Love Elementary
Recorders for Hands-On Learning for Woodmoor Elementary students
Kodiak Jumpropes for the Kokanee Kodiak Jumpers
For a full list of grants awarded, please visit our blog.
Applications are open now for the next round of funding. Spread the word!
10 YEARS AND STRONGER THAN EVER
Ten years ago, three Northshore moms wanted to help kids in financial need, and the Milk Money collection was born. Now part of the Removing Barriers Fund, you can find collection bottles at businesses across the Northshore community. Plus, in a brand-new effort, 16 people chose to host virtual collection jars from November 16th to December 16th.
Proceeds fund programs for students experiencing economic challenges that cannot be funded by public dollars. These include the Opportunity Fund, Basic Needs Aid, Homelessness Services, School Supply Kits, and Student Meals.
Thanks to Foundation donors, more than 500 families have received assistance this year alone.
CARE TEAMS
Teachers and NSD staff are serving in each of our schools as Care Team members. Care Teams help students and families find the resources they need to navigate through crises. Your donations fund resource support for them and a stipend for the lead at each school so we can streamline services and use resources wisely in ways families really need. They are doing incredible work and making an immediate difference connecting with students who need assistance.
GOING ALL IN
Each fall, we also invite the community to replenish funds for all three pillars of the Foundation mission: to enhance and inspire learning, to remove barriers for kids in financial need, and to build skills for life outside the classroom. Our work is only possible because of these private donations.
Even as economic effects of the pandemic have created new or deeper hardships for some families, our community went all in, responding very generously with contributions totaling more than $60,000 by the end of November. Donations continue to come in by mail.
We are encouraged and inspired to continue doing all we can to serve Northshore students and teachers throughout this school year.
SKILLS FOR LIFE
College for Seniors: Our seniors asked for a crash course in college planning and thanks to you, we were able to bring in an admissions specialist to help them navigate their college choices, financial aid, and the application process. These College 101 and College 102 workshops were offered virtually for free online access to all. They can be accessed at our YouTube channel.
Youth Advisory Board: Incorporating youth voice into our work is a 2020/21 priority and we are thrilled that with the help of Pat Waldrop and Rosemary McAuliffe our Youth Advisory Board kicked off this month. Welcome to:
Ariana Berrios, Bothell High School
Yashwant K. Datti, Bothell High School
Lexi Olson-Gwin, Bothell High School
Sky Darkhand, Inglemoor High School
Maya Nair, Inglemoor High School
Isabel Amaya, Inglemoor High School
Sydney Waldrop,North Creek High School
Saydia Phillips, Woodinville High School
LEADERSHIP ACADEMIES
This fall, the Foundation was excited to offer scholarships to 90 teachers who were motivated to expand their leadership skills. The Northshore Education Leadership Academy initiative is designed to positively impact student learning outcomes by developing and strengthening the knowledge and leadership capabilities of the professionals in our school system. The second trimester is starting next week and we are excited to hear about how this work is progressing.
RACIAL EDUCATION & JUSTICE SUPPORT
In February 2020, the Foundation board voted to extend a $1,000 grant to each school to support Racial Education & Justice work. The only stipulation was that the money must be spent for student experience and be a part of a larger plan to integrate this important work. So far, nine schools have put those dollars to work, funding remote assemblies, updated library book offerings, and more.
BOOKS
And finally, books: 17,600 have been delivered to students in our school district – to keep as a apart of the Bookmobile program! Books in the home are a major supporter of literacy and our community has certainly gotten behind this cause. The book drive continues and so does book delivery.
Additionally, later today, thanks to Mascot Books, we are expecting a donation of an additional 16,872 books. These books represent the work of over 100 independent writers and represent a variety of diverse topics. A huge shout out to Amazon who generously transported the books across the country so that our students could benefit. THANK YOU Mascot & Amazon! This donation is an exciting, grassroots way to refresh our school libraries and classroom libraries. Some will even be integrated into the Bookmobile program.
Phew….
It’s a lot.
There’s more, but this email is already really long. So I hope you will join me for my live Foundation update scheduled for Monday, December 21 at 3:30 pm. You can join with this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89242511451
I guess the whole point is… WOW! We’re putting your resources to work to help kids, and we are going to keep doing so. We are so, so, so grateful for you.
Keep reaching out, keep connecting, and let’s keep doing good things for kids.
Carmin Dalziel
Executive Director
Northshore Schools Foundation
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