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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — A donation of $250,000 to the Sioux Falls Public Schools Education Foundation was recently made by T. Denny Sanford.
The gift will support and enhance the group’s four programs, which will have a positive impact on the 24,000 students and 1,800 teachers in the Sioux Falls School District.
Allison Struck, executive director of the Education Foundation says, “This generous investment will help us attract and retain the best educators in the state”.
The full press release by the Education Foundation can be found below.
A $250,000 donation to the Sioux Falls Public Schools Education Foundation will enhance the organization’s programs for the students and staff in the Sioux Falls School District.
Local philanthropist Mr. Denny Sanford made the donation, and the gift will support four programs: Public School Proud Grants, First Time Teacher Grants, the Student Success Fund, and the Education Foundation’s endowment.
With this donation, $100,000 will be used for Public School Proud Grants.
Any teacher in the district can apply for up to $10,000 a year to purchase creative and inventive materials that give students hands-on, immersive opportunities in the classroom. Educators have used grant funds to purchase 3D printers, musical instruments, robots, garden grow kits, art supplies, yoga mats, drones, sensory paths, virtual reality headsets, cardio drumming equipment, games for English language learners, and more.
An additional $50,000 will be used to support First Time Teacher Grants.
All first-time, first-year teachers receive a $200 grant from the Education Foundation to purchase bulletin board materials, posters, organization kits, classroom sets of books, name tags, dry erase markers, flexible seating, and snacks for students.
At the start of the 2021-2022 school year, the Education Foundation awarded 79 First Time Teacher Grants.
The final $100,000 will be split evenly between the Student Success Fund and the Education Foundation’s endowment. Through the Student Success Fund, school-based social workers connect families living in crisis with personal hygiene products, emergency food assistance, winter clothing, bed bug cream and lice shampoo, laundry detergent, footwear, and school supplies.
The Education Foundation also provides city bus passes to high schoolers who lack reliable transportation and GED scholarships to students who cannot afford the fees.
The remaining $50,000 will enhance the Education Foundation’s endowment that is managed by the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.
“This generous investment in the Education Foundation will help us attract and retain the best educators in the state,” said Allison Struck, executive director of the Education Foundation. “We want to celebrate those teachers who are dreaming big to give students opportunities many would not otherwise have.”
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