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Category: endowment
Happy 40th Birthday, SchoolPower!
Thanks to our generous donors, we've supported over 10,000 students with over $13,000,000 since 1981. We are honored to be recognized by the District for 40 years of partnership and support.
$10,000 Gift for Social Emotional Support
Thank you to the Laguna Beach Community Foundation for a gift of $100,000 from the Wayne Peterson Fund. This generous gift to the SchoolPower Endowment will be used to help expand the Social Emotional Support program in our schools. Philanthropist Wayne Peterson, a former mayor of Laguna Beach, passed away in 2019. He was a member of the SchoolPower Endowment board, a longtime City Council member, and supported many Laguna Beach nonprofits during his lifetime. Wayne Peterson, left, and his longtime partner Terry Smith attend the Laguna College of Art + Design’s Collector’s Choice gala in June 2014. (Courtesy [...]
Thurston Students Program Robots
Sixth graders in Andy Crisp’s computer class, a 6-week long course on the Exploratory Wheel, are reaping the benefits of Mr. Crisp’s recent SchoolPower teacher grant, which funded two different types of robots that are programmable with Swift. The SchoolPower Endowment awarded over $110,000 to fund grants in diverse areas including outdoor education, athletics training, reading intervention, science and technology for implementation in the 2019-2020 school year. “It is such a joy to watch my students build robots from scratch, learn how to program the robots almost entirely on their own, and then use their creativity to have the robots [...]
Incredible Impact: Hexberg Family Foundation Over $330,000 to Athletics Funding in 9 Years
This year, funding from the Hexberg Family Foundation allowed LBHS Athletics to continue to provide and expand strength training for student athletes. Students flocked to the outdoor “muscle beach” weight stations, coached by a highly qualified staff. “The funded strength training staff has taken our strength program to the next level. Partnering with a trainer who thinks about our conditioning as their top priority has allowed us to run a much more detail-oriented program,” says Ethan Damato, Head Coach Boys & Girls Water Polo. Next year, the Hexberg Family Foundation will continue their support with a $50,000 grant, [...]
Inspired Teachers Awarded $111,450
Great teachers inspire their students, but many times, teachers find themselves inspired by their students. Thurston Middle School Health and PE teacher and Ecology Club mentor Penny Herrick-Dressler is one teacher who recognized a need amongst her students and was inspired to act upon it. “The Healthy Kids Survey shows us that our student body is experiencing stress,” she explains. “That stress is negatively impacting other areas of their lives.” Through a discussion with her Ecology Club students, Herrick-Dressler developed the idea to create the "Away Place," an outdoor space on the Thurston campus where students can sit by themselves [...]
SchoolPower Endowment Gives $50,000 to LBUSD’s Rocket Ready Program
SchoolPower Endowment funded $50,000 towards LBUSD’s game-changing “Rocket Ready” program, which focuses on project-based learning and teacher development. The gift will fund the classroom projects portion of the pilot program. Chris Clark, Endowment’s president, says, “SchoolPower Endowment is excited to fund $50,000 for the Rocket Ready classroom projects. We want to congratulate Mike Morrison (LBUSD’s Chief Technology Officer) and the terrific team at LBUSD for making Rocket Ready a reality! We are all very proud to be a part of this ground-breaking effort.” The innovative program could have nationwide impact as other districts adopt LBUSD’s Rocket Ready model. “The [...]
