The Upper Freehold Regional Education Foundation wants to bridge the gap between the community and the school board to benefit students’ educational experience.
The Upper Freehold Regional School District faced numerous budget reductions this school year, including losing $1.7 million in state aid and $4.9 million to meet the cuts Allentown and Upper Freehold residents demanded when the proposed budget failed at the polls in April.
The district addressed these cuts by eliminating administrative, teaching, secretarial, paraprofessional, custodial, and security positions; cutting extracurricular activities, clubs and school trips; and freezing or reducing necessary equipment and supplies purchases. The education foundation has started a “Bridging the Gap” campaign to increase community awareness on the budget issues and to promote more resident involvement with the schools. The foundation hopes volunteers will come forward with their time, talent and tax-deductible contributions in order to “bridge the gap resulting from budget cuts,” according to education foundation President Sydney Guerrero.
The Upper Freehold Regional Education Foundation was founded in December 2005 to promote excellence in education by funding projects that enhance learning and education in the Upper Freehold Regional School District. The foundation is a nonprofit organization that has awarded $49,000 in grants to the school district since 2007. The group’s fundraising efforts included working with community members to organize “Evening at the Arts” for the music program, partnering with the Millstone Township Foundation for Educational Excellence on “Fore the Kids,” hosting a comedy night at the Clarksburg Inn, creating an annual Sno-Ball Softball Tournament, holding the Night of Chance, hosting a golf outing, and running the Community Twilight Challenge 5K. These fundraisers helped formalize grant cycles in the spring and fall of each school year since the foundation’s inception for 43 funding requests from the three schools. The foundation has also worked as a vehicle for Bristol-Myers Squibb to donate $30,000 to the Allentown High School Robotics Club.
The foundation would now like to expand community involvement in the schools, with opportunities to help in several ways. The foundation worked with the school board to identify items in each of the three schools that need funding.
During Back to School Night, the foundation gave a presentation relating that the elementary and middle schools needs $3,000 per semester for their world language initiative, and grades 3-4 need $2,700 for grammar/vocabulary books. The middle school needs activity restoration funds, including $1,308 for its seventh-grade trip to Stokes Forest and $1,635 for its eighth-grade trip to Washington, D.C. Intramural activities and sports need $1,000, and the screenwriting and filmmaking clubs need $2,000 per 10-week session. At the high school, the newspaper and magazine seek $3,250. The high school also needs an art adviser at a cost of $3,447. Clubs like the Knitting Club and the Language and Science labs could be restored for $1,380 per club.
Guerrero reported to the Board of Education on Oct. 20 that the outpouring of support from the community has been wonderful since Back to School Night. The foundation presented the board with a check for $2,958 to fund the trips to Stokes Forest and Washington, D.C. He also said that the textbooks for the third- and fourth-graders would be purchased.
“People have really taken this and run with it,” Superintendent of Schools Dick Fitzpatrick said. “People are talking about ways to make very special donations.”
The baseball booster club chose to fundraise for a project on the district’s long-range facilities plan that was supposed to be completed in 2009. The club will correct the lip between the pitcher’s mound and home plate, put new sod down, level the field and put in irrigation.
“They have been working on this since June,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was the world’s best kept secret.”
Fitzpatrick said that the collaboration of the baseball booster club and the education foundation is a perfect example of “bridging the gap” through targeted fundraising.
“This is a perfect example for people who want to make sure their money hits the target,” he said. “The foundation is more than happy to assist. This is how they see their function. The foundation has come to the rescue at the perfect time. People are coming forward at the perfect time. It seems to me that we really are very fortunate.”
The foundation is also seeking people to donate their time and talents to help with the safety squad, the Optimist Club at the high school, math enrichment and lunch duties. Volunteers could also suggest other causes and activities that they are interested in supporting.
Guerrero said the foundation needs volunteers and trustees. He hopes for broad community representation, including Millstone residents, as they send their highschool age students to Allentown High School. He said the foundation is looking for people with experience in areas such as fundraising, public relations, grant-writing, nonprofit and legal issues. The group also seeks a webmaster.
“In addition to giving back, volunteering is a great way to meet new people and develop or enhance your skills,” Guerrero said.
The foundation’s upcoming events include the STAR (Students, Teachers, Administration Recognition) program, the fourth annual Sno-Ball Softball Tournament on Feb. 12, 2011, and the third annual Community Twilight Challenge and Kids’ Fun Run on May 21, 2011.
To learn more about the foundation, visit www.ufref.or or email BridgingThe- Gap@ufref.org.