Teachers First Breakfast Celebrates 15th Year at Squid’s

Squids Restaurant and Oyster Bar isn’t normally known for its teeming early morning crowds, but on Friday, April 27, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools teachers and staff enjoyed a full, hot breakfast at the restaurant before they headed off to their classrooms and offices. Another 1,182 staff went through a “drive thru” line and received to-go orders of breakfast burritos, fresh fruit cups, muffins, yogurt  and other treats, many of which were prepared by School Board members Rani Dasi and Mary Ann Wolf, as well as Public School Foundation’s former executive director, Kim Hoke. This wildly popular parent-supported fundraiser for the Public School Foundation drew crowds of teachers lining up in the dark, outside Squid’s well before the 6 a.m. opening time. Nearly three hours later, when the last steam table trays were scraped clean of scrambled eggs, bacon, grits and sausage, more than $100,000 had been pledged for our teachers, a record amount.
   
Since the first breakfast in 2003, the owners of the Chapel Hill Restaurant Group have provided all of the food and pulled off the increasingly large numbers of meals, with the help from dozens of volunteers. Tom Herzog, manager of Squid’s, said that the early years felt more stressful for his team, until the veteran volunteers from the Foundation learned the ropes. Herzog smiled as he nodded at the bustling helpers throughout the dining room. “They can run the show now,” he said. However, the Squid’s folks still came in between 2 and 3 a.m. to start preparing the food.
   
Lynn Lehmann, Executive Director of the Public School Foundation, said, “To the Chapel Hill Restaurant Group...what can we say?  You guys are the best and your generous spirits overwhelm us.  We appreciate all of you so much - and all that you give to our organization - and the community.  THANK YOU!”

The total amount raised in 15 years reached $856,431 this year, all of which has been earmarked for the Teachers First Fund to support programs, grants and professional development opportunities for CHCCS teachers, including scholarships towards National Board Certification.
   
As the sun rose, Ron Stutts from WCHL took the microphone to broadcast the beginning of his morning show from Squid’s, interviewing Lehmann and Stephanie Yost, breakfast volunteer organizer - as well as Dr. Todd LoFrese, Board Chair Rani Dasi and Gloria Sanchez-Lane, school social worker from Phoenix Academy. Various greeters from Lincoln Center rotated through their posts, as other School Board members hauled trash and collected plates and cups. The collegial spirit and contagious adrenaline allowed the waves of teachers and staff to move quickly through the serving line, providing them time to visit among the tables.

“The Annual Teachers First Breakfast and Roses is a CHCCS community-sponsored event,” said Lehmann. “I’m so very grateful to the parents who support this effort, while honoring their teachers with the gift of a breakfast and rose at the same time. It is a win-win-win for CHCCS families, the Public School Foundation and our deserving teachers.”

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Mary Andrews Named National Family Teacher of the Year

Mary Andrews isn’t sitting still in retirement. On the contrary, she’s building on her 40-year teaching career by expanding family literacy programs throughout the Chapel Hill community. Today, Toyota and the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) surprised Andrews during a reading event with local families with the news that she is the 2017 Toyota Family Teacher of the Year.

Andrews and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation also received a $20,000 check to further Family Reading Partners (FRP) program outreach.

“Mary’s dedication to working with families to change the academic and life trajectories of vulnerable parents and children is impressive,” said Dr. Joshua Cramer, vice president, NCFL. “Her work is in alignment with NCFL’s mission to eradicate poverty through two-generation education solutions for families. We are proud to recognize her as our 2017 Toyota Family Teacher of the Year.”

Andrews’ FRP and READ2ME programs are designed to model and encourage reading together as a family. Facilitators teach parents how to interact with their children to promote kindergarten readiness and reinforce that parents are their child’s first and most important teacher.

Additionally, the program works to address the 30-million word gap many low-income children face upon entering kindergarten.

“Mary’s work with Chapel Hill and Carrboro families makes a visible impact on our school system and our community,” said Superintendent Pam Baldwin, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS). “We are grateful for her continued work to support families in our district. She is building a legacy of family literacy that is contagious and inspiring.”

Andrews’ literacy programs began on a small scale during her teaching career and were later adopted district-wide. Once retired, she expanded programming to reach more low-income community members with young children, including:

     • Teenage parents: high school students join Andrews monthly during lunch to complete an FRP session and receive books for their babies;
     • Recovering mothers: monthly in-home sessions are held through the UNC Hospitals’ HORIZONS program;
     • Refugee families: In partnership with the Refugee Support Center, Andrews finds bilingual books and hires interpreters to spread the message;
     • Parents of newborns: Andrews visits low-income parents referred by Orange County Health Department and, upon invitation, returns every six months with new books until the child reaches kindergarten;
     • Early Head Start: Andrews meets families at Early Head Start centers for FRP lessons and book giveaways; and,
   
• Family Success Alliance: a county-wide collaborative using a multi-generational approach to overcome poverty for families.

The Toyota Family Teacher of the Year award, a national honor now in its 21st year, recognizes families play a crucial role in the success of children, and salutes educators who are exceptional at using intergenerational approaches to engage students and their families in education.

Andrews and runner-up Fernando Gonzalez, of Tucson, Ariz., will be recognized for their accomplishments at the annual NCFL Families Learning Conference in Tucson on October 9. The conference convenes the nation’s most progressive experts in education, policy, and family and parent engagement to discuss and share the latest information regarding multigenerational approaches to learning.

“We’re proud to recognize Mary Andrews as Toyota Family Teacher of the Year for the dedication to countless children and families through her unique literacy programs,” said Mike Goss, general manager, social innovation, Toyota Motor North America.

Gonzalez, a family literacy specialist with Make Way for Books in Tucson, was chosen as the Toyota Family Teacher of the Year runner up. Gonzalez works to empower parents to embrace their role as the first, best and most important teacher in their child’s life, as well as to become advocates for their children’s education. With this recognition, Make Way for Books received a $5,000 grant to continue Fernandez’s work engaging families through six-week programs that meet families where they are – in apartment and mobile home communities, social service agencies, and neighborhood centers.

Goss added: “The work of Mary and Fernando will increase children’s upward mobility and ability to break intergenerational cycles of poverty. This will pay dividends for these students, their families, their schools and their communities for generations to come.”

ABOUT NATIONAL CENTER FOR FAMILIES LEARNING
The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) is a national nonprofit organization working to eradicating poverty through education solutions for families. Partnering with educators, literacy advocates, and policymakers, NCFL develops and provides programming, professional development, and resources from the classroom to the community that empower and raise families to achieve their potential. For more information on NCFL visit familieslearning.org.

ABOUT TOYOTA
Toyota (NYSE:TM), creator of the Prius hybrid and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota and Lexus brands. Over the past 60 years, we’ve built more than 30 million cars and trucks in North America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in the U.S.) and directly employ more than 44,000 people (more than 34,000 in the U.S.).  Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold nearly 2.6 million cars and trucks (2.45 million in the U.S.) in 2016 – and about 85 percent of all Toyota vehicles sold over the past 15 years are still on the road today. 

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Endowed Teaching Chairs Recognize Excellence in Education

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation (PSF) seeks nominations for the 2016-2017 Teaching Chair Awards. Chair honorees receive monetary awards of $1,000 annually for the duration of the award and will hold the chair award for two to three years, depending on the specific chair.

The current Teaching Chair categories include the following:

   - Upper Elementary Chair - For Excellence in Teaching Innovation (Grades 3-5)

   - Middle School Award - Zora Rashkis Chair for Excellence in Teaching Middle School Language        Arts or Social Studies

   - Middle and High School - Burton Stuart Chair for Promising New Teacher in Math or Science

   - PTA Chair for Excellence in Teaching Cultural Arts (All Grade Levels)

Students, parents, CHCCS staff and members of the community are invited and encouraged to nominate outstanding teachers for these respective awards. Criteria for eligibility and nomination links can be found on the Public School Foundation website (publicschoolfoundation.org).

All nominations must be submitted by January 31, 2017.

The PSF is a non-profit organization that financially supports students and teachers of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. Since its inception in 1984, the foundation has distributed over $ 5,000,000 for programs and projects that otherwise would not have received funding. The PSF receives funding from grants and private donations, and helps schools with fundraising through community events such as the annual 5K for Education and the Teachers First Breakfast and Roses. For more information, please contact Lynn Lehmann, PSF Executive Director at psf@chccs.k12.nc.us or by phone at 919-968-8819.

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Record Setting 5K for Education!

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation, along with Fleet Feet Sports, sponsored the 5K for Education race on Saturday, March 19 with 800 registered runners participating. This event brings attention to the local schools and supports the health and wellness of teachers and students. The race was preceded by a six-week training session for teachers and staff. More than 250 teachers ran the race on Saturday with 300+ CHCCS students and families running by their sides. 

The day began with a warm-up featuring school mascots to get the crowd ready to run. Awards were given for the top winners in their age groups. Brendon Howell, a teacher at Smith Middle School, was the top overall finisher with a time of 17:03!

5K for Education chairperson, Christine Cotton, reported that this was a record for participation with a 50 percent increase in registrations over any of the previous five years. 

"We hope to bring the message to all the CHCCS teachers and staff to come together, train together and set the goal to walk or run a 5K. This was a first-time race for more than 60 people," said Cotton. "Fleet Feet Sports was wonderful to offer trainings at reduced rates for all teachers and staff. It was so great to see teams from each school training and competing together. The school spirit was everywhere on Saturday."

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation (PSF) supports programs for teachers and students in CHCCS through fundraising efforts and grant awards. To help or donate, visit their website at www.publicschoolfoundation.org.

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Morris Grove has Spirit...Yes, They Do!

Morris Grove Elementary won the 2015 Walk for Education Spirit Award...Congratulations Geckos!

The school will receive a check for $200 at the Walk for Education check presentation during the Board of Education meeting on Thursday, November 5. The meeting will take place at 7 p.m. in the Lincoln Center Board Room.

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Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation Announces Incoming Executive Director

Lynn Lehmann

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation (PSF) announced Lynn Lehmann as the organization’s incoming Executive Director. After an extensive regional search, the PSF Board of Directors appointed Ms. Lehmann to assume this leadership role upon the retirement of Executive Director Kim Hoke on September 30, 2015.

Ms. Lehmann holds a B.A. in English and a M.A. in Journalism and Mass Communications. For the past 15 months, she has worked as the PSF Program Manager, where she has managed and implemented several aspects of PSF grant programming and fundraising. Additionally, Ms. Lehmann is a long-time community and school leader, chairing numerous volunteer organizations within the CHCCS system. Among other volunteer roles, she served as PTA President and School Improvement Team Chair for multiple local schools. She also sits on the Board of Directors for Project Graduation of Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Inc., and she is a Past-President of the PSF Board of Directors.

“Lynn’s extensive experience in grant-writing, marketing, event planning and fundraising make her ideal for the position,” said Laura Baxley, Foundation President. “Additionally, Lynn brings a deep knowledge and understanding of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and the Public School Foundation.”

The Public School Foundation is an independent non-profit organization that financially and programmatically supports students and teachers of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. Since its inception in 1984, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation has distributed over $5,000,000 for programs and projects that otherwise would not have received funding. The PSF receives funding from grants and private donations and helps schools with fundraising for special projects through community events such as the Annual Walk for Education, the 5K for Fitness, The Teacher’s First Breakfast and Roses, and, in partnership with the East Chapel Hill Rotary Club, the Teacher’s Supply Store.

For more information, please visit the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation website:
www.publicschoolfoundation.org.

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Duke Energy Foundation Grant

The Duke Energy Foundation has granted the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation $11,000 in 2015 to support initiatives that emphasize science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), as well as programs and scholarships that will contribute to the success of low-income students in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools.

District Manager of Government and Community Relations for Duke Energy Indira Everett presented the $11,000 check to CHCCS Superintendent Tom Forcella, and Public School Foundation Program Services Manager Lynn Lehmann at Estes Hills Elementary School on June 10, 2015.

School social worker Betsy Booth and some of the students who have participated in one of the projects funded by the grant were also included in the presentation.

STEM related programs that will benefit from the Duke Energy Foundation grant include “Super Science Saturdays” at Estes Hills Elementary which provides field trips to science-related destinations for lower-income students, parents and/or caregivers to experience hands-on engaging science opportunities.

The funding will also provide materials for Ocean Life units in the Morris Grove Elementary fourth-grade in order for students to conduct research and study text types and develop their ability to reason, question, and hypothesize as a means of making meaning as they read.

The grant will also fund two scholarships for each of the district’s high schools for seniors who will be going to college and are currently in the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program. AVID’s mission is to close the achievement gap by preparing all students for college readiness and success.

The focus of the Duke Energy support is to help provide opportunities for children who come from families that struggle economically and expose them to opportunities that will contribute to their future success.

“At Duke Energy, we seek to close the achievement gap and end the cycle of poverty that often separates low-income students from their peers,” said Indira Everett, District Manager of Government Affairs and Community Relations at Duke Energy. “Duke Energy is proud to support the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School’s initiatives to increase all students’ ability to succeed.”

“There are stark differences in opportunity and family resources within our district,” said Public School Foundation Executive Director, Kim Hoke. “One of the top two priorities at the Foundation is to increase the learning opportunities for children within and outside of the school day. The other is teacher support. We appreciate Duke Energy Foundation’s recognition of these similar goals and are grateful for their support.”

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Kim Hoke Earns Top Honor - Gaskins Award

Congratulations to Kim Hoke on winning the North Carolina School Public Relations Associaton’s top honor – the Barry Gaskins Service Award.
 

This prestigious award from the North Carolina School Public Relations Association (NCSPRA) annually recognizes a practicing or retired school public relations professional for outstanding leadership in school public relations and communications.

The award is named for Barry Gaskins, APR, who passed away unexpectedly in March 2003 at the age of 49. During his 24-year career as the first and only public information officer for Pitt County Schools in Greenville, North Carolina, Barry gained a national reputation for his skill as a public relations professional and his ability to engage diverse publics in support of public education. He served as president of NCSPRA in 1986-1987 and later in various roles as state coordinator and governmental liaison. He also served as Southeast Region Vice President of the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA), 1996-1999, and president of NSPRA, 2001-2002. Barry was known for his passion for school public relations and deep commitment to the advancement of public education. His leadership, vision and guidance on the NCSPRA Board greatly contributed to the chapter earning the coveted Blue Ribbon Chapter Award from NSPRA for 27 years. Barry was devoted to NCSPRA and NSPRA and spent much of his time supporting the professional development of his colleagues and serving as a mentor and friend to his “NCSPRA family.”

Kim Hoke currently serves as the Executive Director of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation. She previously spent 22 years as the public information officer for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and ten years in Granville County Schools.

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17th Annual Walk for Education - Biggest Ever!

Thank you to everyone who participated in this year's Walk for Education. The 17th annual Walk, organized by the Public School Foundation, was the largest to date with an estimated 8,000 participants.

School mascots, marching bands and many others gathered at McCorkle Place on the UNC campus on Saturday, October 5. Aaron Keck, this year's emcee and on-air personality from WCHL, eloquently entertained and informed walkers as they prepared to line up for the march down Franklin Street.

The Walk ended at Lincoln Center, where an enormous carnival took place, covering the front lawn, soccer field and parking lot. Participants enjoyed giant inflatable slides, obstacle courses, face painting, a dunking booth, and much more.

It was a great day - over $125,000 was raised.

We appreciate our Public School Foundation and all who helped make this day a very memorable event.

 

The Rashkis Raptors marching down Franklin Street

Overhead view of the carnival at Lincoln Center

Estes Hills Elementary Principal Drew Ware

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5K for Fitness...Saturday at 9 a.m.

The Public School Foundation's second annual, district wide 5K FOR FITNESS is set for this Saturday, April 27 at 9 a.m.

The ladies in the picture, from our Transportation Department, are ready...are you? Registration is open to all: $25 for adults and a reduced price of $15 for students. The teacher/staff fee is only $10.

A Mascot Dash, including mascots from all CHCCS schools, will take place before the race – at 8:45 a.m.

Dr. Forcella, CHCCS Superintendent, will be the honorary race starter. The starting point will be McCorkle Place on the UNC campus.

To register, or for more information, visit: www.publicschoolfoundation.org.

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Honor Teachers and Staff With Breakfast and Roses

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation invites parents/guardians to kick off the 2013 Teacher Appreciation Week by honoring their children’s teachers and school staff at the 10^th Annual Teachers First Breakfast.  Let your teachers, administrators, counselors, media specialists, specials teachers, teaching assistants, clerical, custodian, food service, bus drivers and other staff know that they are appreciated by treating them to a fantastic breakfast and/or a rose.  Just fill out the form online or download the form from the website. Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation will take care of everything else. Please submit all orders by April 16.

The breakfast, scheduled May 3, is $20. Each rose is $5, and the roses will be delivered on May 1. Every person that is honored with a breakfast and/or rose will receive a printed invitation and card with the name(s) of the donor honoring them and a brief note. Note: If teachers receive more than one breakfast ticket, they often share them with their colleagues.

But the breakfast and roses are more than that: they are a win-win. The breakfast is sponsored by The Chapel Hill Restaurant Group, the owner of Squid's Restaurant. So proceeds go to The Teachers First Fund to support teachers and staff. The fund provides grants for teachers pursuing national certification, professional development, classroom grants for student enrichment, support for the teacher supply store, grants to first-year novice teachers, materials for a local merchant discount program, and awards for exemplary staff performance.

For questions, or to order by telephone, call 919-968-8819, or fax the order to 919-968-7884. 

Orders can be also placed by completing the 2013 Teachers First Breakfast Order Form and sending it to the foundation office or by going online.

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Be Thinking About Nominations

Mark your calendars! The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation will soon be seeking nominations for two prestigious teaching chair awards. These awards are the Zora Rashkis Chair for Excellence in Teaching Middle School Language Arts and the Upper Elementary Chair for Excellence in Teaching Innovation (Grade 5). Information on the nomination process will be sent out later this month.

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Novice Teacher Tea

The Public School Foundation sponsored the annual Novice Teacher Tea on Tuesday, October 23. New teachers from around the district gathered at A Southern Season for an outdoor recognition on the restaurant patio. Words of encouragement were delivered by President Ashley Wilson, Executive Director of Human Resources Arasi Adkins and Superintendent Tom Forcella. Additionally, teachers were each given a check for $100.

Thank you to the Foundation for all it does for the students, families and staff of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools...and also for celebrating the newest members of our team.


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