In 2022, the Warrior Run Community Education Foundation approved $11,000 in Classroom Innovation Grants, transferred $14,000 from Muncy Bank and Trust Company’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) funds to the Foundation towards a new computer lab, and from the First Century Fund, joined the Elementary PTA in supporting the LU Project for the new elementary building with $15,000. In 2023 the Foundation has initiated plans for both a spring and a fall Classroom Innovation Grant round.
Endowed Foundation scholarship funds will provide over $60,000 in graduation scholarships/awards on June 2nd to Class of 2023 awardees. Foundation sponsored, the WR Chapter of YIP — Youth in Philanthropy — has fundraised, studied philanthropy locally, and just recently determined non-profit recipients of $3500 who are serving the Warrior Run community and youth. The WR Middle/High School Art Show in May will benefit from $1200 Foundation support to recognize budding artists, as we continue to make a difference and raise student opportunity. Are you interested in helping?
In the fall of 2022, K teachers Patty Marshall and Jill Bertanzetti’s $1500 Classroom Innovation Grant application for Boogie Boards was funded for all K students. Boogie Boards are reusable writing tablets, replacing markers and white boards, erasing with the touch of a button.
“In September we practice numbers and our names.
By March, we are writing sentences on our Boogie Boards!”
Sarah Kowalski, Foundation board member and former high school principal, steps forward for WR and explains why now...
“Why would someone who is retired and 76 years old agree to be a co-facilitator of the $1.5 million First Century Fundraising Campaign? I ask myself that question on a rather frequent basis. As I contemplated how I agreed to take on that role, usually two very good reasons come to mind. One reason is love of the Warrior Run School District and the second is the fact that philanthropy in raising money for a worthy cause can change our students’ lives for the better.
First and foremost, it may sound corny or a cliché but I love and have pride in the Warrior Run School District. I fell in love with Warrior Run 70 years ago when I began first grade at the Limestone Elementary School, which no longer exists. My first grade teacher taught me how to read and opened a whole world of exciting places to visit and from which to learn. Years of good teachers followed Mrs. Murray as I entered the junior high and senior high schools, and new material in all subject areas opened my eyes to a world that held endless possibilities for me in determining what career path I wished to follow.
Programs, that today are common place, were unusual in 1963-64. A cooperative semester program with Bucknell University on Saturday mornings studying world literature did not cost my family anything but magically was possible through Warrior Run. Perhaps, that was when my desire to be an English teacher was solidified. Just one small accommodation by a school district can make the difference in the life of a student.
Secondly, having worked in education for over 37 years, I have seen that providing students with a quality education costs money. As a former principal at the secondary level at Warrior Run for a number of years, I had seen that even a small amount of money can make a tremendous difference in the quality of education that occurs.
However, it is not always easy to obtain those monies as state support for education fluctuates year to year and local resources are often limited by the amount of money that can be raised through tax increases. Thus, when I was asked to join the newly formed Warrior Run Community Education Foundation after retirement, I was eager to help with this new endeavor.
Classroom Innovation Grants were some of the first ways that the Foundation used monies raised to enhance education. Teachers are encouraged to apply for a grant to get a new program started which will provide students with opportunities to try something exciting.
Two early grants to be funded were the Defender Café, an idea for special needs students to run their own “café” serving coffee and other snacks in the morning before school begins and the Defender Trading Post, a used clothing store housed in the former Watsontown Elementary and run by students. That small outlay of $1000 each has seen years of successful business practices as students learned new skills in real world settings.
Mrs. Cathy Grow, Transition Coordinator for Warrior Run, states, ‘Our students not only learn vocational skills working in these two programs, but they enjoy interacting with their peers and the community.’
Small amounts of money, as seen above, can provide educational opportunities that the district budget cannot support. Therefore, just imagine what $1.5 million can do for our students and teachers!
So, why do I continue to work on the First Century Fund Campaign to raise money for the Warrior Run District and the students who attend here?
The answer is quite simple: together we can make a difference for these students and for the generations of Warrior Run students yet to come! I believe in Warrior Run and its mission to provide the very best educational opportunities for all students.
