News & Events

August 3, 2010

MCCSC Fundraising Effort Meets 90% of Goal

By Andy Graham

Not all fundraising campaigns would necessarily celebrate achieving 90 percent of a goal, but organizers and beneficiaries of the "All for All" effort to restore extracurricular activity stipends were clearly gratified by that number today.

The campaign raised $675,000 in 46 days, with more than half of that total coming in the final week.

The money will allow coaches, faculty sponsors and mentors of Monroe County Community School Corp. extracurricular programs to get 90 percent of their normal stipends for the 2010-11 school year.

A contract approved in June by the MCCSC and the Monroe County Education Association teachers union eliminated $750,000 in ECA stipends for more than 400 people who guide the majority of the district's 10,000 students in athletics, music, theater, student government, academic competitions and myriad other areas.

The move freed up money to restore school library media specialists to their previously cut certified positions and compelled the campaign to address the ECA need.

"I think the community has been amazing, in its understanding of the issue and in its really generous response," Janis Stockhouse, who leads the Bloomington High School North music department, said today. "It's exciting to walk around North right now seeing soccer, football, marching band, all these activities going on. Who would have thought with any certainty that would be the case a couple of months ago?

"In June, I was thinking we'd be lucky to raise half the goal, all things considered. If we got to 50 percent, I thought we'd have done very well. Now look at this. Look where we are. It's wonderful. The students, coaches, ECA sponsors, all of us owe Tina Peterson, the Foundation (of Monroe County Community Schools) and the whole community so much gratitude."

Most fundraising campaign leaders contemplate what a realistic goal is before establishing the amount sought. In this case, the number was imposed upon the campaign -  $750,000, in six weeks, realistic or not. Foundation executive director Peterson explained, "In the average campaign, you would obviously spend many months preparing, then securing lead gifts, before you even go public. This time, we had to respond quickly to a relatively desperate situation.

"But it was the right thing to do for kids and people clearly responded in tremendous fashion. My dominant emotion now that the campaign has concluded is gratitude — gratitude that a veritable army of people were willing to take up a good portion of their summer in the effort, were willing to come from all walks of life and various programs to work together for a common goal."

Donations came in all sorts of sizes and by all sorts of means.

One anonymous donor gave $75,000. One person paid $1,000 to have his vehicle spiffed up at last Saturday's Bloomington High School South "All for All" car wash. When the Bloomington High School South Class of 1980 conducted its 30th reunion, it collected more money than expected for expenses, and gave the $700 left over to the ECA fund. North's band parents raised $10,000 in a phone-a-thon. One family's children took baked cookies around their neighborhood with notes about ECAs. Bloomington's Rotary clubs and the South Central Indiana Kiwanis were especially active in fundraising efforts. The campaign's online site, www.Give4ECAs.org, drew page views — and sometimes donations — from Canada, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden, China, India, the Philippines, Japan, Egypt and Chile.

Stockhouse was downtown Saturday night and saw a scene that resonated with her regarding the campaign. "There was a (student) band busking on Kirkwood for ECAs, with some adults sitting in, and somebody videotaping, and seemingly every single person passing by making a donation," she said. "And the car wash down at South that same day was just extraordinary, with so many people stepping forward to help.

"So many events, big and small, so many people stepping forward. But No. 1 on all of this is Tina Peterson. None of this would have been possible without her willingness to take it on and just the great way she goes about things. It was done in such a positive manner."

Peterson credited the foundation board for taking on the task. In an e-mail issued this afternoon announcing the campaign's final figures, she wrote: "We knew the odds were stacked against — an incredibly tight timeline in the middle of summer during the midst of a shaky economic recovery, (and) we joined a host of other nonprofits in seeking funds from a community bombarded with requests for support. It is not only schools that are struggling today.

"All for All, as it turns out, means more than just supporting all programs for all kids. We learned that in this community it means that all of us, from the parents of preschools to those far removed from K-12, are willing to support our schools and the essential role of extracurriculars."

Stockhouse said that made her a proud Bloomingtonian.

"It could have been the other way, you know," Stockhouse said. "People could have just sat around, folding their arms. Instead, it was the determination of our community, so many people rallying around this, that took it in such a positive direction.

"It's further proof this is a very special community. You know what they say: 'Talk is cheap.' Or, 'Show me the money.' Well, this community showed it cares, with its money and its effort, all the volunteering, all manner of support. I'm so proud to live in Bloomington, Indiana".

August 2, 2010

For all Extracurricular Campaign news, go to Give4ECAs.org

July 8, 2010

MCCSC Extracurricular Campaign at 14% of Total

By Dann Denny

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools' "All for All" campaign has brought in $104,229 of the $750,000 it hopes to raise by Aug. 1 to replace eliminated extracurricular activity stipends.

"The mail this morning (Tuesday) brought 22 donations totaling $3,390," said Tina Peterson, executive director of the Foundation, which is overseeing the fundraising campaign. "Two people walked in this morning and delivered $5,500 in ECA contributions. Almost $5,000 was given on the Give4ECAs.org website this weekend. Things are beginning to percolate."

Peterson said a number of recent fundraisers, coupled with media publicity and about 7,000 letters explaining the urgency of the need that were recently sent to all parents of MCCSC students, have triggered a surge of donations that amount to nearly 14 percent of the goal.

"We still have a huge goal in front of us," she said. "But Bloomington has a history of rallying to support kids, so I remain hopeful."

Peterson said as of Tuesday, the campaign has received five lead gifts totaling $75,622, 12 gifts of $1,000 or more, seven gifts of $500 or more, 15 gifts of $250 or more, 66 gifts of $100 or more, and 26 gifts of $1 to $99. Community fundraisers have brought in $2,500.

Peterson said foundation officials handed out 5,000 donor forms and bookmarks with the ECA Web campaign site — at www.Give4ECAs.org — at the Fourth of July Parade.

She said last Thursday the Bloomington High School North Band Boosters raised more than $7,000 by phoning future, current and former band families and friends. The Bloomington High School South Band Boosters have plans in the works for their own phone-a-thon Saturday.

"This personal approach is the key to our success as our goal is to raise $340,000 from those most impacted by extracurriculars," Peterson said, adding that for more information on how to conduct a phone-a-thon and a sample script, people can visit www.Give4ECAs.org.

The MCCSC recently cut $750,000 for extracurricular stipends for the 2010-11 school year. The foundation is attempting to replace that funding by Aug. 1 to help preserve programs in athletics, arts, clubs, academic competitions, student publications, student government, student community service and other areas.

The campaign is part of an ongoing foundation campaign to raise $3.75 million for literacy programs, school libraries, classroom resources, and efforts to keep kids engaged with and enrolled in school. The campaign is now focusing on ECA fundraising because of its Aug. 1 deadline. The rest of the campaign will continue through next May.

Upcoming ECA fundraisers

Peterson said she is grateful for all the fundraisers that have already taken place and those planned for the coming weeks, among them:

• The Band Boosters Phone-a-thon beginning at 8:30 a.m. Saturday in the band room at Bloomington High School South. The Boosters will call all alumni, asking for financial support.

• The Rogers Binford PTO is holding an Ice Cream Social on July 15 called "I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Extracurriculars" for their school families.

• Nick's English Hut will support ECA fundraising throughout the month of July. Wait staff are donating a portion of their tips, and Nick’s has a button on the cash register that allows customers to make a donation to the Extracurricular Fund when they pay. Nick's waitress Natalie Cabanau is also recruiting participation from other downtown restaurants.

• The Scramblin' for Extracurriculars Golf Tournament is set for a 1 p.m. shotgun start July 20 at Bloomington Country Club. Four-person teams will compete for prizes including golf rounds at the Pete Dye and the Donald Ross courses at French Lick, and a round for four at Victoria National. All the usual will be included — mulligans and a skins pot. Entry forms will posted on the www.Give4ECAs.org website. Entry fees are $500 per team and hole sponsorships are available for the same amount. Cook Medical has signed on as the Corporate Event Sponsor and additional event sponsorships are available. Contact the foundation office at 330-7700 for more information.

• Bloomington's Red Eye Relay is partnering with the Foundation to raise funds July 24. The Red Eye Relay is a 100-mile overnight relay for teams of 2 to 7 runners (or up to 9 runners for high school teams). The Red Eye starts and finishes on IU’s Robert C. Haugh Track. Teams pick their start times on Saturday afternoon in order to finish between 6 and 9 a.m. on Sunday morning. There is also a 5K run/walk and one mile family run-walk associated with the Red Eye, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the IU track with a $20 entry fee. Proceeds benefit MCCSC, R-BB and Harmony schools. Their donation to FMCCS this year will be used to support extracurriculars. Register at www.redeyerelay.com by July 15.

• The American Legion Breakfast for Extracurriculars, 7-11 a.m. July 24. Partake in an all-American breakfast — biscuits, gravy, eggs, bacon. Tickets are $10 and will be available from MCCSC athletic departments. Each high school will also have an allotment of tickets to sell in their main office.

• There will be an ECA campaign booth at the Monroe County Fair, July 24-31.

• An Evening at Creekbend Vineyard with Jenn Cristy July 27. Local comic Brad Wilhelm will entertain the crowd during intermission. Guests are invited to bring blankets and lawn chairs. Food, wine and soft drinks will be available for purchase. Tickets will go on sale later this week.

ECA campaign strategy

The foundation is trying to raise $750,000. The money would be distributed across the board to all ECA stipends, not earmarked for specific programs. Foundation officials say if 90 percent of the goal is raised by Aug. 1, then all the stipends would likely be funded at 90 percent.

Donors will receive a receipt from the foundation signifying the amount donated. Those wishing to give immediately can visit www.mccsfoundation.org, call 330-7700 (ext. 51085), or visit the website, www.Give4ECAs.org.

July 1, 2010

Supporters of MCCSC Activities Encouraged to Join in Parade

By Andy Graham

Come out and support the team. Make that teams. All 50 of them.

Imagine seeing 50 different teams and squads, garbed in that many different uniforms and representative gear. That could add a vibrant shot of color to Saturday's Bloomington Independence Day Parade, and showcase for onlookers the broad scope of extracurricular events affected by current MCCSC budget cuts.

A fundraising campaign is attempting to replace $750,000 in lost funding for extracurricular activities.

Bloomington High School North band director Janis Stockhouse and like-minded colleagues such as North theater director Francesca Sobrer and BHS South theater director Catharine Rademacher are inviting any and all ECA participants — students, parents, teachers, fans — to gather at Indiana University's Sample Gates at 9 a.m. Saturday to join together for the parade.

Participants can walk along with or ride on a school bus to be festooned with banners supporting the ECA campaign, supplied by Awards and Screen Printers and bearing the slogan "Our Children, Our Schools, Our Future" with the campaign's www.Give4ECAs.org web address and athletics, art and club icons.

"It's everybody, together," Sobrer said Tuesday. "This idea came to us through Janis, originally, and the band boosters are spreading the word, but we'd love anybody and everybody who cares about this to come out.

"I know this is a time of year where you put the word out and just hope people will be able to come, with so many people out of town and busy with summer activities, but we wanted to have a presence in the parade to support the community while we're asking for its support."

North and South students are already combining to form a marching band for the parade, but Sobrer hopes their colleagues who aren’t marching will join with the ECA group. All ECA representatives are encouraged to wear their uniforms, medals or T-shirts signifying their activities. All parade participants must sign a waiver form (downloadable at http://bloomington.in.gov/media/media/application/pdf/6973.pdf) that which be available at the Sample Gates the morning of the parade. Participants 18 and younger will also need a parental signature.

Those walking will have donation forms to hand out regarding the ECA campaign, which had already raised $75,487, over a tenth of its goal, by Tuesday afternoon.

"We call them 'extracurricular activities,' but they really are a major partner in our kids' educational process," Sobrer said. "They constitute reasons why many kids stay in school or stay engaged with school, and are tremendously enriching. Perhaps they should be called 'essential-curricular activities,' complementing the crucial work that goes on in our classrooms in so many very unique and valuable ways."

Stockhouse elaborated on that Wednesday evening, by phone: "Educational systems all over the world envy ours for our extracurricular components, which they don't have, and which help our kids be more creative, more collaborative, more competitive. We need to value that, too, and not take it for granted."

June 25, 2010

Additional Information About Extracurriculars in MCCSC

For a list of all athletic positions, click here. 

For a list of all co-curricular positions, click here.

For Frequently Asked Questions, click here.

For the ECA donor form, click here. 

For information about the Benefits of High School Activities, click here. 

For our detailed fundraising plan, click here.

June 30,2010

Fundraisers Set to Help Schools Keep Extracurricular Activities

By Andy Graham

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools' "All for All" campaign to raise $750,000 by Aug. 1 to replace eliminated extracurricular activity stipends has several events scheduled for upcoming days and weeks.

A website resource is at Give4ECAas.org.

Here is a list of events set as of Tuesday afternoon:

ECAs in the Bloomington Independence Day Parade, 9 a.m., Saturday. Bloomington High School North's Janis Stockhouse and Francesca Sobrer and BHS South's Catharine Rademacher are coordinating an entry in the parade to highlight the extracurricular fundraising effort.

The Bloomington North Band Boosters will conduct a phone-a-thon Thursday evening, and the North Athletic Boosters have been contacting parents by e-mail.

The Rogers Binford PTO is holding an Ice Cream Social on July 15th called "I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Extracurriculars" for their school families.

The FMCCS Parent Committee has drafted a letter which will be sent to all MCCSC parents — about 7,000 households - asking for their support. It includes answers to frequently asked questions. The letters should start arriving in mailboxes Thursday or Friday. This letter is intended to complement the parent contact being initiated by PTOs and booster groups. It is not meant to replace it.

Nick's English Hut will support ECA fundraising throughout the month of July. Wait staff will donate a portion of their tips and, starting Thursday, Nick's will have a button on their cash register that will allow patrons to make a donation to the Extracurricular Fund when they pay. Nick's waitress Natalie Cabanau is also recruiting participation from other downtown restaurants.

The Village Deli will offer its award-winning Paxton Potatoes for a special price of $4 on July 3, with proceeds to the ECA campaign. The Village Deli is closed for remodeling from the July 1 through July 5, but on July 3 will be open to serve only Paxton Potatoes and beverages.

The Scrambling for Extracurriculars Golf Tournament is set for a 1 p.m. shotgun start July 20 at Bloomington Country Club. Four-person teams will compete for prizes including golf rounds at the Pete Dye and the Donald Ross courses at French Lick. All the usual will be included — mulligans and a skins pot. Entry forms will posted on the Give4ECAs.org website. Entry fees are $500 per team and hole sponsorships are available for the same amount. Cook Medical has signed on as the Corporate Event Sponsor and additional event sponsorships are available. Contact the foundation office at 330-7700 for more information.

Bloomington's Red Eye Relay is partnering with the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools to raise funds for extracurriculars July 24. The Red Eye Relay is a 100-mile overnight relay for teams of 2 to 7 runners (or up to 9 runners for high school teams). The Red Eye starts and finishes on IU's Robert C. Haugh Track. Teams pick their start times on Saturday afternoon in order to finish between 6 and 9 a.m. on Sunday morning. There is also a 5K run/walk and one mile family run-walk associated with the Red Eye, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the IU track with a $20 entry fee. Proceeds benefit MCCSC, RBB, and Harmony School. Their donation to FMCCS this year will be used to support extracurriculars. Register at www.redeyerelay.com by July 15.

The American Legion Breakfast for Extracurriculars, 7-11 a.m. July 24. Partake in an all American breakfast — biscuits, gravy, eggs, bacon. Tickets are $10 and will be available from MCCSC athletic departments. Each high school will also have an allotment of tickets to sell in their main office.

ECA campaign booth at the Monroe County Fair, July 24-31.

June 21, 2010

Community Foundation Awards $25,000 Grant to MCCSC Group

Every little bit helps. Bigger bits help even more.

The Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County announced today it is supplying one of the 10 lead $25,000 gifts sought for the campaign to help restore MCCSC extracurricular activity stipends. The community foundation is donating the money to the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools' $750,000 "All for All" campaign to restore the stipends by Aug. 1.

"The Community Foundation has a long history of support for the education and development of youth," Shari Woodbury, community foundation president, said in a press release announcing the grant. "We hope our grants at this critical juncture will serve our students, inspire others to step up in support of our youth, and reassure MCCSC's club sponsors, coaches, music directors and other mentors that, together as a community, we can maintain extra-curricular activities."

Woodbury's organization today also announced a $6,800 grant to Richland-Bean Blossom community schools, with a purpose to the grant as yet undetermined, but the amount equal to the MCCSC grant on a per-capita enrollment basis.

Foundation of MCCS executive director Tina Peterson said response to the "All for All" campaign, which officially kicked off during a meeting with ECA stakeholders last Wednesday night, has been good. "Right now we're at $43,700 that has come in for the ECA campaign, basically since the Wednesday meeting," she said this afternoon. "We've had a number of phone calls from people interested in being lead donors at the $25,000 level.

"Beyond that, we have some very motivated groups of parents, boosters and school leadership who are setting up strategies and events to help over the next five weeks."

Peterson noted that parents at Rogers and Binford elementary schools are planning an ice cream-related event, that a golf outing and a 5K run are in the works, and that the campaign is planning a presence in the city's annual Independence Day Parade, set this year for July 3. Several parent and booster groups are planning phone banks to help solicit campaign contributions.

"I should have a more complete, detailed list of events sometime soon," Peterson said. "Lots of people are stepping up within their own circles of influence and seeing how we can coordinate and work collectively toward the goal.

"We're working on a couple of concert events, and we're also checking with IU to see if we can comply with NCAA guidelines and still have an event involving the university (that could benefit local high school athletics)."

Peterson expressed gratitude for the community foundation's grant, and for a $25,000 gift from Bunger and Robertson attorneys announced earlier that was split that evenly between the ECA campaign and the school foundation's general $3 million fundraising campaign that will continue till next May. But she noted that much remains to be done over the next month in terms of raising $750,000 for ECAs.

"The response has been very rewarding in terms of actions, but we have a long way to go in terms of dollars," Peterson said. "But we've been humbled by the way people are stepping up and stepping forward."

June 9, 2010

Foundation Needs $750k to Save Extracurricular Stipends

By Bethany Nolan, The Herald Times

In an attempt to raise enough to restore stipends for extracurricular activities, the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools has expanded its $3 million campaign by an additional $750,000.

The news comes on the heels of last week's announcement that negotiations between the Monroe County Community School Corp. board and the district's education association restored 15 media specialist positions to district libraries and put some teachers back in classrooms, but also cut all of the more than 400 stipends for extracurricular activities — including music, sports, theater, Science Olympiad and other programming. The decision to cut media specialists came during this spring's round of $5.8 million in budget cuts, made in the wake of state funding shortfalls.

There's one caveat for the foundation's fundraising campaign for the extracurricular stipends — the money has to be raised by Aug. 1 to ensure the district complies with requirements in personnel contracts, Title IX issues and its own policies, according to foundation executive director Tina Peterson.

All dollars raised will go into one general fund, meaning individuals or organizations cannot donate to maintain one specific program, she said.

"There are a lot of organizations with strong booster groups, but there are other programs that are equally important without built-in constituent groups to raise money for them who need support from all of us," she said. "This is one broad effort to support all extracurricular programs."

However, school board officials made it clear donations could still be made to individual booster organizations or other entities, but those dollars would go toward those organizations' fundraising projects and not toward restoring extracurricular stipends.

It was unclear Tuesday night what would happen if the foundation doesn’t reach the fundraising goal for extracurricular stipends by the Aug. 1 deadline. District superintendent J.T. Coopman explained all programs will be treated equally, pointing out that if a percentage of the overall $750,000 goal was raised, it could be distributed across the board. But Peterson said no final decision has been made, and said failure to raise the entire sum could mean the school board might have to make difficult decisions in the future.

"I think it's important we restore these in total," board member Sue Wanzer said. "We all believe in the value, worthiness and educational function of ECAs. And we don't want to pick and choose one as more valuable than the other. It's important that if we restore them, that we restore them all."

School board vice president Valerie Merriam said it was a difficult decision to cut the stipends, but said the board did so knowing those dollars could be raised through the community.

"When we made that recommendation, we knew we were cutting something we could fundraise for," she said. "When we cut the media specialists, we cut something that couldn't be fundraised for."

The original portion of the foundation's fundraising campaign - $3 million - is intended to help support local schoolchildren in light of overarching funding cuts, Peterson said. The foundation has a May 2011 deadline to raise that sum.

June 3, 2010

Campaign Videos Available

To learn more about our campaign for "Our Children, Our Schools, Our Future""watch the following two videos:

A Message from the Campaign Leaders

Stepping Up for Kids

May 10, 2010

Donations save Bradford Woods program for 2011

Bloomington fifth-graders will get to pack their bags for Bradford Woods for a 54th consecutive school year, after all.

Generations of Monroe County Community School Corp. students have experienced the residential environmental education camp operated in Morgan County by Indiana University, but expenditures for it were part of $5.8 million in cuts authorized by the MCCSC board this spring

in the wake of state funding shortfalls.

A press release issued Friday evening by Julie Ramey of Bloomington Parks and Recreation confirmed that a grassroots group called “Save Bradford Woods for MCCSC' had raised the $40,000 deemed necessary to reinstate the program for at least a year.

According to the release:

"Save Bradford Woods for MCCSC began working with the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools in early April to collect funds for the Bradford Woods program. Individuals contributed $14,000, including over $5,000 donated by shoppers at Bloomingfoods stores, to the Foundation's Bradford Woods fund, and an anonymous donor pledged a matching $10,000 gift.

“Earlier this week, the (Bloomington-based) Raymond Foundation, whose mission is to support and further science and environmental education, contributed $20,000, thereby meeting the group's goal. Additionally, the Bloomington Urban Enterprise Association has committed up to $10,000 for scholarships to send students from low-income families to Bradford Woods next year."

Bloomingfoods general manager George Huntington said Friday evening, "Between generous community donations and some very welcome grants, we’ve met our goal. It's a community success, a happy day for all of us."

Save Bradford Woods co-founder Daniel Reed said the group will continue to work toward its long-term goal of permanently restoring the program to the MCCSC budget. "It's one step at a time, and the next thing we'll work on is to reinstate the two-and-a-half days program for subsequent years," Reed said Friday, "but, ultimately, we'd really love to get it back to the point MCCSC students were attending for a full week again (which they did up through 2003).

"As I talk with people, everybody enjoyed their Bradford Woods experience, but those who had truly transformative experiences were the people who went to the program for a week. Even then, it’s just a week out of 13 years of K-12 school experience, but it seems to have had a great impact."

Christy True, Reed’s wife and coordinator of the campaign, agreed.

"First things first, but what I would really like to see is to eventually get it back to a full week and find ways to make the program more affordable," she said. "Most of the other school districts that go to Bradford Woods have volunteers acting as nurses and chaperones rather than paid personnel, for example. We plan to form a committee and bring all sorts of ideas to the table, looking at the budget.

"One possibility I’ve brought up is we could maybe have our fourth-grade kids take ownership of the trip by doing some fund-raising projects of their own, which would help build excitement for the trip for an entire year and create a real sense of accomplishment and ownership as they then go on the trip — hopefully, eventually, for a full week. I’m a Montessori teacher and like the notion of enabling and empowering kids to do good things for themselves and, in raising money together, creating a sense of cohesion that comes to working for a unified goal."

Additional fundraisers to support the Save Bradford Woods campaign include a benefit concert at Max's Place May 13 and a concert at the Farm Root Cellar on May 14. For more information about Save Bradford Woods for MCCSC, or to find out how to make a contribution, contact True or Reed at 320-9687, or check out the group's Facebook page.

April 6, 2009

$500,000 gift to aid Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools

By Andy Graham, The Herald Times

April 6, 2010

Red Eye Relay supports FMCCS

The Red Eye Relay is an overnight relay where teams of 2-7 runners complete a 100 mile course that starts and finishes on the IU Outdoor Track.  This year's event will be held on July 24-25.  Teams pick their start time on Saturday in order to finish between 6:00-9:00 am Sunday morning.  What happens in between is anyone's guess but be sure the killer H's (heat, humidity and hills) will be waiting for all.

This event is held each year to support educational foundations in and around the Monroe County (IN) area.  Last year the Red Eye contributed $4,800 total to the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools, the Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Foundation and the Harmony Education Fund.  With the need to support schools greater than ever the Red Eye invites all runners to take part in this event or anyone to come and support the teams.  It is a spectacle for all to see!

For more information on the Red Eye visit www.redeyerelay.com or email redeyerelay@comcast.net.

January 12, 2010

Online Grant Applications Now Available!

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools has been working with eFoundationSolutions to develop a user-friendly online grant application process.  We are pleased to announce that MCCSC employees may now apply for all FMCCS grants using our online application (first time users must create usernames). For the Spring 2010 semester, applicants may choose to use the online application process or to submit hard copies of applications.  Next school year, all applications will need to be submitted online.  Ultimately, electronic submission will simplify the application process, reduce processing costs, and  provide for a more environmentally friendly way of managing the grant process. For more information, please contact the Foundation's technology coordinator, Tamar Shachaf at shach0tam@mccsc.edu

January 12, 2010

FMCCS Announces New Grant Programs
for the Spring of 2010!

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools is offering two new opportunities for MCCSC employees to enrich the educational experiences for their students.

An anonymous gift of $25,000 from a local donor, will fund an Enrichment Grant Program to supplement core curriculum in all educational content areas. These grants will serve to bring learning to life for students by offerings hands-on and experiential learning activities and experiences. The ultimate goal of the program is to increase student engagement and curricular relevance for students. Grants will range in amounts from $250 to $5,000+. For more information on the application process and eligible grant expenses, please review the Enrichment Grants Information Sheet.

November 20, 2009

Support the Happily Ever After Fund!

The Happily Ever After Fund was established by a local

family that realized recognizing literacy is the key to a happy, prosperous future. They established this fund to purchase books and other essential materials for elementary library schools. The Happily Ever After Fund will allow for long term sustainability of the Foundation's Elementary Library Grant Program, which has purchased thousands of books for all elementary school libraries in MCCSC over the last five years. This program has helped replace copies of books that were decades old, helped establish reading groups and has supported special events. It aligns with the Foundation's goal to provide all teachers with resources to  provide the best education for our children. A donation to  the Happily Ever After Fund will support all MCCSC elementary schools and provide resources to promote literacy among students.

Click here to donate to the Happily Ever After Fund and support literacy!

June 3, 2009

Dancing with the Celebrities raises $15,000 to support public education in Monroe County!

Thanks to your "votes" for Angelo Pizzo and those of many other enthusiastic donors, we were able to raise $15,000.00 through the Dancing with the Celebrities event.  These funds will be used by the Foundation to offer improved educational opportunities for the 11,000 students of MCCSC.  With your help, we will be able to support classroom projects, enrichment opportunities for students, and professional development for teachers. 

Let the Dancing Begin! Angelo Pizzo is dancing for FMCCS in the 3rd Annual DWTC Competition!

April 15, 2009

Next month local celebrity Angelo Pizzo, screenwriter and producer of Hoosiers and other films, will be dancing for kids in Bloomington's third annual Dancing with the Celebrities competition!

Angelo and five other local personalities will be competing for the DWTC crown and for the benefit of six local charities.  The winner of this highly competitive event will be chosen by a combination of scoring by the judges and votes from the community.  Votes are cast in dollars given to charities both before and during the event.  Angelo has chosen to support public education by naming the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools as his charity!

In the spirit of the competition, the Foundation hosted a Hollywood style Red Carpet Premiere and After Party on May 2nd to raise "votes" for Angelo and to support public education in Bloomington.  Click here to watch our movie premiere!

September 15, 2008

Old National Bank donates computers to Bloomington New Technology High School

Thanks to the generous support from the Old National Bank Foundation, students at Bloomington New Technology High School will have access to the technological resources necessary to fulfill the instructional imperative of the school. While New Tech High School is not a technology school, unlimited access to computers and other technology is a central tenet of this 21st Century learning environment. The grant from ONB Foundation will provide the school with 10 additional desktop computers equipped with the tools required to support the school's project based curriculum.

The Foundation extends its sincerest appreciation to the ONB Foundation for their support and for their corporate commitment to strengthening the communities they serve by impacting lives.

September 1, 2008

Tasus Corporation donates $10,000 for Bloomington New Technology High School

The Foundation is pleased to announce that Tasus Corporation is joining a growing community partnership of New Tech supporters. Their $10,000 pledge will be used to support the initial implementation costs of fully equipping the school for innovative learning and for success.

Tasus Corporation is a global manufacturing leader in injection molded plastic parts. Their parent company is located in Nagoya Japan and they have a number of facilities throughout the United States, including Bloomington, IN. Tasus seeks to maintain extraordinary community citizenship as exemplified by their commitment to Bloomington New Technology High School.

Tasus President Melanie Hart believes that innovation in public education is critical to our community's success and to creating employees to support global organizations like Tasus:

"When applicants come to our door we want to see not only a person who wants a job and has an education, but a person who wants to give more than just their presence to the task at hand. We want a person that is truly fired up about learning, about sharing their knowledge, about thinking big, not small, that has developed the ability to create ideas and generate interest in those ideas, and has the stamina to make them a reality. The advancement and development of new products is the key to our success and it will take all different types of people to get us there. We see this as our 21st century challenge, or the United States will all but lose its manufacturing base."

August 20, 2008

Elena Veach Scholarship Fund

In lieu of flowers and other offerings of support, the Veach family has established a scholarship fund in Elena's name to support graduating high school seniors planning to attend Butler University, her alma mater. This scholarship will serve as a fitting tribute to Elena's dedication to young adults and their success. To make a donation to this fund in Elena's memory, please click here and type "In Memory of Elena Veach" in the Related Gift Information box.

As so many in the community have expressed, our thoughts and prayers are with the Veach family.

June 18, 2008

Thank you to those who "voted" for Gerardo!!

FMCCS would like to thank those who participated in The 2008 Dancing with the Celebrities event!  Thanks to the "votes" of many enthusiastic donors, we were able to raise $13,000 through this event!  The support of our favorite Dean, Gerardo Gonzalez, and his efforts to raise funds for local education is greatly appreciated.

May 14, 2008

FMCCS proudly presents "Educating Young Adolescents: Middle Level Education"

On June 2, 2008, please join us at 7:00pm in the Bloomington High School North library to learn more about the academic needs of middle level students and how schools should be designed to meet their unique needs. This event, like others in the Foundation's ongoing series of Community Conversations, offers our community the opportunity to participate in discussions about the future of public education in the 21st century.

For more information, please click here.

May 7, 2008

Duke Energy Donates $25,000 for Bloomington New Technology High School

The Duke Energy Foundation has awarded the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools $25,000 to support Bloomington New Technology High School. This gift will be used to help purchase the New Technology Learning System, to provide Professional Development for teachers, and to secure the first complement of 400 computers for the school. Duke representative Steve Bahr presented a check to Alan Veach, New Tech principal, at the May 7th MCCSC School Board meeting.

To read the full press release, click here.

February 5, 2008

Be Cool, Stay in School Drawing will be held on Friday, May 23rd!

On Friday, May 23rd, all MCCSC seniors with perfect attendance will be entered into a drawing to win a new Pontiac G5 from Curry Buick!  The event will be held at 5pm at Curry Buick.  Students must be present in order to win, so mark your calendars!

January 28, 2008

New Tech High School gets a home of its own! Click here for the full article.

August 31, 2007

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools partners with DonorsChoose to Offer Teachers Another Funding Option for Classroom Needs and Field Trips

This school year the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools (FMCCS) will award more than $58,000 to MCCSC educators through five grant programs designed to support student learning throughout the corporation. These grant funds will be available to support school and classroom projects, to increase student physical fitness and health, for professional development for educators, and to improve elementary school libraries.

Despite these funding opportunities, many educators will still find it necessary to either fund learning through out of pocket spending or forgo opportunities for their students.  To provide teachers and other front-line educators with another option, the Foundation is partnering with DonorsChoose, a web-based program that provides a simple way to fulfill needs in the classroom and foster innovation in our public schools.   Teachers post projects online and donors choose what they'd like to fund. 

To introduce MCCSC educators to DonorsChoose, the Foundation of MCCSC has established a challenge program with DonorsChoose.  FMCCS will provide the first $250 in funding for the first project submitted to DonorsChoose by any educator from each of MCCSC's 22 school locations.

To read the full press release, click here.

August 31, 2007 

Fitness Trail Opens at Lakeview Elementary

For the third August in a row, a new fitness trail has opened at an MCCSC school. This year the students at Lakeview Elementary christened their new school shoes on the 1/4 mile fitness trail installed this summer. The MCCSC trail program is made possible through a joint funding initiative between the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools, MCCSC, the IU School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, and The President's Challenge. The fitness trail will be used at Lakeview to support curricular instruction in health, wellness, and physical fitness. Don't tell the kids, though. They believe it's just another option for recess and after school fun!

August 16, 2007

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools Kicks off $400,000 Campaign to Support Funding of Bloomington New Tech High School

The Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools (FMCCS) kicks off a campaign today to raise $400,000 to support the initial implementation costs for Bloomington New Tech High School. Donations will be sought to help fund one time costs to purchase lifetime licenses for the New Technology Learning System, for training of the New Tech teachers and principal, and for the initial complement of computers needed over the first four years of the school's operation. The dollars raised by FMCCS will complement those already committed for start up costs by the MCCSC, the National Governor's Association and other state granting agencies totaling $300,000. Donations can be made to the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools at 315 North Drive, Bloomington, Indiana, 47401. For more information contact Executive Director, Tina Peterson at 812.330.7700.

To read the full press release, click here.

August 16, 2007

Cook Group Incorporated Awards $150,000 in Matching Grant Dollars to Support School Innovation and Transformation Efforts in MCCSC; Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County Leads Matching Effort with a Grant of $35,000 for Bloomington New Technology High School

Cook Group Incorporated will make a $150,000 grant to the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools to enable implementation of innovative, transformational school redesign efforts within the Monroe County Community School Corporation. A majority of these grant funds will be used to fund start up costs for a New Technology High School which will open in the Fall of 2008. A portion of the funds will be dedicated to supporting other transformational efforts that are in various stages of implementation within the school corporation. Recognizing the necessity to create strong community partnerships to support successful innovation in our local schools, Cook has established this grant opportunity as a matching fund initiative.

The Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County supports school transformation as well and recently committed $35,000 in start up funding for the Bloomington New Tech High School. "Our Board of Directors believes that the transformation of our public schools to serve 21st century needs is an important community priority with long-term ramifications. Supporting the first new educational model to be implemented in Monroe County is a natural for the Community Foundation," states Angela Parker, Board Chair.

To read the full press release, click here.

August 16, 2007

Cook Group Awards Major Financial Grant To Support Innovation In MCCSC: $150K goes to Foundation to help create New Tech High School

Cook Group Incorporated will make a $150,000 grant this year to assist the Monroe County Community School Corporation (MCCSC) embark on an innovative restructuring effort aimed at improving the quality of education for all students, the company announced today. The majority of the grant, which includes significant matching funds to encourage similar donations from other community organizations, institutions and individuals, will go to assist MCCSC to implement its "New Tech High School" model, explained Cook Group President Kem Hawkins.

The grant to the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools will significantly bolster the foundation's funding capacity, making it one of the state's best K-12 school foundations. The resources of the Foundation of Monroe County Community Schools and other public secondary school foundations, however, pale in comparison to the annual voluntary support for institutions of higher learning such as Indiana University, which has annual support of over $300 million, and an endowment of over $1.2 billion, and out-of-state universities such as Harvard, Yale and Stanford that have endowments greater than $10 billion.

"That needs to change if we are to succeed in our critical mission of educating our young people," stressed Hawkins, who taught music at Bloomington High School before joining the Cook organization more than 25 years ago. "Based on the state funding formula, MCCSC is ranked in the bottom segment of the 290+ school systems in the state. While it would be great if the funding formula could be improved through the General Assembly to more appropriately fund the needs of this and other school systems, we can't wait around for the state or federal governments to solve our problems or create our opportunities! We must come together as a community to make this happen."

To read the full press release, click here.

DONATE NOW