A whole new world of educational instruction begins Monday, March 30 for BPS teachers, students and families. With all public schools in the state ordered closed at least through April 15 by order of the governor, BPS leadership has been working around-the-clock to develop a continuity of education plan through online instruction.
Stone Middle School in Melbourne is a ‘one-to-one’ school, each student has access to check out a laptop device for use at home. Each device requires insurance, and Stone had a balance of $1,100 to fulfill before a portion of the laptops could be distributed to students to begin online instruction.
Identified as a 'priority school', Stone has higher rates of students on free and reduced, and living at or below the poverty line.
When Legacy Club Manager, Sara Almond, learned of the need she moved into problem-solving mode. “The Legacy Club program has a small budget from ad sales in the monthly ‘Legacy Letter’ that is distributed digitally. Typically these funds go to supporting events for Legacy Club members, or supporting community events that impact our 55+ demographic in Brevard. Now that most all community events are either cancelled or postponed for the foreseeable future, I consulted district leadership to see if the Legacy Club could cover this balance for Stone.”
With district approval, Legacy Club funding will be used to cover the insurance balance for a portion of Stone Middle’s laptops, enabling students to continue their education this school year.
A social worker at Stone, Anna Curry, has this message for the Legacy Club,
"Now more than ever our one-to-one program is crucial in providing students every opportunity for success. Being able to distribute these laptops because of the Legacy Club’s generosity means that every student will be able to engage in the learning process, continue to connect with their teachers and peers, and stay on the path for academic success."
