The Mercer Island Schools Foundation’s annual Fall Phone-A-Thon is November 12th and 13th, when 150 volunteers will be calling homes throughout our community.
Our Island community has always placed a high value on the role that a quality public education plays in the success of our children and our community. Your donations to the Mercer Island Schools Foundation are a driving force and impetus behind the quality of our schools and community.
You may have recently heard in the news that the state of Washington is beginning to restore educational funding due to the Washington Supreme Court “McCleary” decision. While this is a step in the right direction, the monies involved only begin to chip away at the structural problems with school funding over the past few years. If we want to ensure great education for our children, we must continue to provide local, community investment. Your support of local education levies, the Mercer Island Schools Foundation, as well as our local PTAs and booster clubs, provides opportunities for our children to go above and beyond basic education, allowing them to have a great educational experience.
The Fall Phone-A-Thon provides an opportunity for our community members to invest in every student, in every school, every day. Each donation, great or small, will fund truly superlative programs that are designated as priorities by the school district. Your participation this fall will have an impact on new curriculum, textbooks, instructional materials, enrichment and fine arts programs, student support programs and professional development for our teachers.
As a parent of two elementary-aged students, I see the impact that private donations make on the lives of our students and teachers every day. Bob Sagerson, a teacher at Mercer Island High School, states, “I have benefitted from the new math curriculum materials and through enrichment grants which supplied geometry manipulatives to further students’ understanding.” From bigger items like new math and science and curriculum and materials to smaller items like teacher-directed projects in the classroom, your support allows the school district to teach to the full potential of all of our students.
Great public education is a foundation of any community, especially one like ours. When your phone rings on November 12th or 13th, please answer the call! You can also make your donation online at www.mercerislandschoolsfoundation.com. Thank you for your support.
Robert Spalding
Board of Directors, Mercer Island Schools Foundation
