Check out the August President's Message by Cindy Morris below. |
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PPS Foundation/CFCI's Annual Classroom Grant Applications Now Available through October 1! |
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Schools are back in session soon and need your help! Whether it's purchasing school supplies, helping with open houses, filling a Little Free Pantry, getting students ready to read or just giving hi-fives to kids as they enter on the first day of class, PPS schools want YOU back.
Let's help our students have a great school year! Contact your sponsor school or Adopt-A-School coordinator, Sarah Oakford, at sarah.oakford@psd150.org with any questions.
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Horizons and See It Be It is Back!
After almost a decade helping students in Peoria Public Schools explore career opportunities for their future, we are excited to be kicking-off our middle school Horizons Clubs and the K-5 See It Be It career education programs for the 2021-2022 school year! With lessons learned from our program pivot last year, we will be bringing a variety of career speakers to our students via zoom, while still working with them on essential soft skill development and goal setting education.
Be on the look-out for sign-up opportunities to share your career and educational story with the students. Sign-ups will be available in September for Fall 2021. For more information, contact Trish O’Shaughnessy patricia.oshaughnessy@psd150.org
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Get to Know the People who Support the
Peoria Public Schools Foundation!
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We are excited to welcome three amazing professionals to our Career Exploration Program staff! Read on for some fun information to get to know them a little better. |
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Matt Violet - Horizons and See It Be It Career Exploration Programming Logistics Coordinator
Born and raised in Peoria, Matt joins the Foundation after relocating back home from northeast Ohio, where he worked in many roles with education foundations.
Matt, what music is on your back to school playlist?
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen, Led Zeppelin's Heartbreaker and Fade to Black by Metallica!
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Annalee Anderson, Career Tech Advocate, Horizons Clubs
Annalee is a graduate of Richwoods High School and is currently a student at Bradley University. She has worked as a certified yoga instructor, with an emphasis on the social emotional development of children through yoga practice and meditation. Annalee joins us as an instructor in our middle school career exploration Horizons Club program.
Annalee, what is on your nightstand right now?
An empty coffee cup
My jewelry box
A lavender scented candle
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Sara Montgomery, Career Tech Advocate, Horizons Clubs
Sara is an education major at Bradley University and brings to the Foundation years of diverse experience working with a variety of students in the Peoria area. With a background in tutoring middle school children in multiple subjects, Sara is joining the team as an instructor in our middle school career exploration Horizons Club program.
Sara, what was the last show you binged and loved?
I'm halfway through watching the Vampire Diaries series for the fifth time! I keep switching between Team Duncan and Team Stefan.
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Matt, Annalee and Sara, what's your favorite meal?
Matt - Pepperoni and Cheese Pizza!
Annalee - Pasta!!
Sara - My go to meal is always a turkey sandwich with salt and vinegar chips.
How about your favorite film?
Sara - I'm not one for films, but I can enjoy any cartoons for some comic relief.
Annalee - In the Heights!
Matt - I'd say Avengers Infinity Wars.
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Thanks Matt, Annalee and Sara! We are so excited to have you all as part of the PPS Foundation team! |
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Check Out Buzz Chats, a PPS Foundation Video Series! |
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Buzz Chats is back for the new school year starting this Thursday, August 12th! Check it out live on the PPS Foundation's Facebook page at 6:30 PM. Cindy will be chatting with the PPS High School Principals about the upcoming year.
Each month we will be connecting with different members of our community to talk about our public schools and how they interact with current events in Peoria. All chats can be viewed live on our Facebook page on the second Thursday of each month at 6:30 PM. Not able to catch it live? No problem, the videos will stay posted on our page so scroll through to watch any you missed.
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The 9th Annual Wine and Whiskey Walk is once again back. Tickets are $40 and go on sale on Monday, August 9th. We're also seeking volunteers to help with this fun event. The event will be held on Saturday, October 16th from 1-6 pm at the Junction City Shopping Center and all proceeds benefit the Peoria Public Schools Foundation. You won't want to miss it!
What is the annual Wine and Whiskey Walk?
The Wine and Whiskey Walk is a great way to spend your Saturday afternoon and raise money for public education. With over 30 samplings of different wines and whiskeys available, participants are encouraged to spend the day at Junction City exploring the shops, having tasty treats, and enjoying live entertainment. Souvenir wine tasting glass, raffle and door prize giveaways and free swag bags from Junction City are just some of the extra perks you receive for attending. This event is brought to you by Junction City Shopping Center, Born2Events and the Peoria Public Schools Foundation.
How can you help?
Volunteers are needed at the tasting tables to pour drink samples and to setup/cleanup. Sign up for a volunteer slot by CLICKING HERE.
We're also looking for event sponsors! CLICK HERE for more sponsorship information.
Where can I purchase a ticket?
Visit the event's website by CLICKING HERE or check out the Facebook event page HERE.
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Student Attendance is KEY for Student Success!
This past school year, the number of students who have been absent and missed out on significant amounts of learning is alarming and unprecedented. When students are chronically absent, starting as early as preschool and kindergarten, they are at risk of not reading proficiently by third grade, poor achievement in middle school and dropping out of high school. Check out the video below and help us get the word out that it is so important to make sure our PPS students are attending school!
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PPS Foundation HERO of the Month:
Matt Fogelmark
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Our August HERO is long-time Peoria Public Schools employee, Matt Fogelmark! Matt works at the Print Shop located at the Roy Ricketts Center and is the PPS Foundation's go-to-guy for all of our printing needs. Matt always goes above and beyond to make our marketing material look good. Between printing material for the entire PPS school district and the PPS Foundation, we are constantly impressed with his flexibility, work ethic and communication style. He is one of the easiest people to work with, and we could not be more grateful to be able to work with him.
Congrats and thank you, Matt, for all you do for Peoria Public Schools!
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Spots are available on the new electronic sign located on the PPS Stadium property. The sign has awesome visibility for both eastbound and westbound traffic on War Memorial Drive. Daily, weekly and monthly spots are available. All proceeds for sign advertisement go directly to help Peoria Public School's campaign to improve the stadium property. Message Jen at jennifer.adler@psd150.org for more information on prices or any other questions.
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PPS Foundation's Scholarship Program |
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Did you know that the PPS Foundation administers 19 scholarships for graduating PPS seniors each year? The more funds we have available, the more scholarships we can award for each of these scholarships. Last year we were able to provide 27 scholarship awards to help continue the education of these PPS students. We know our students are capable of great things, and we want to help them achieve their goals! Students can begin to apply for each of these scholarships on November 1st. We have seen first hand how much these awards mean to the students who receive them. Help us grow this program so that we can provide funds to as many students as possible. Thank you in advance for your generosity!
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Click HERE for more details on each scholarship!
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PPS Foundation's Board of Directors:
Dan Adler, Andre Allen, Ruth Bittner, Solivian Dismuke, Maarten de Haas, Alex Elger, Daniel Musisi, Cheryl Sanfilip, and Cathy Wiggers
PPS Foundation's Staff:
Cindy Morris - President
Jen Adler - Administrative Director
Sarah Oakford - Adopt-A-School Coordinator
Trish O'Shaughnessy - Director, Community Engagement & Horizons Program
Annalee Anderson - Career Tech Advocate
Sara Montgomery - Career Tech Advocate
Matt Violet - Horizons and See It Be It Career Exploration Programming Logistics Coordinator
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