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Time for an educational foundation?
[Note from the Editor: At the June 27, 2006 school board meeting, a motion was passed which will fund the start-up of an educational foundation for Readington schools. The cost of $19,500 will be paid to Educational Foundation Consultants to form the foundation and assist with initial preparation and marketing. This article below was written prior to this action.]
For months now, the idea of forming an educational foundation for Readington Schools has popped up and ducked back down again during school board meetings. As a matter of fact, the idea has been kicking around Readington for years. Still, no serious action has been taken by the board or any other third party to get the ball rolling. Aside from the potentially difficult start-up process, is the formation of an educational foundation a good idea? What can a foundation really do? Several outside consultants or other knowledgeable people have recently spoken to the board about the concept. One way to form such an organization is for the school board to pony up tens of thousands of dollars to pay a consultant who would then take the legal steps to form the foundation and assist with the marketing of the new organization for a year or so. The goal is for the school district to recoup this money within the first year in the form of grants. Of course, the legal process in and of itself is not insurmountable by interested citizens who might want to tackle the project themselves. Members of the current school board seem both interested and frightened by the concept of assisting in the start up of a foundation, although it has heavy support by some, including outgoing interim superintendent Jim Sheerin. A look around New Jersey shows that Readington is actually behind the curve in this area. Many affluent municipalities and even not-so-affluent municipalities have long established educational foundations already providing significant support to their schools. Just ask our new superintendent Jorden Schiff. His previous employer—Howell Township Schools—will benefit from an educational foundation formed in 2005. Other towns, such as Ridgefield Park, West Windsor-Plainsboro, Bloomfield, Somerville, Woodcliff Lake, Marlboro, South Orange/Maplewood, Montvale, Montgomery and Princeton all have very successful foundations giving serious money to their public school systems. The NJ School Boards Association has counted at least 70 educational foundations in New Jersey. By serious money, we mean into the hundreds of thousands of dollars in some cases. Some counties, such as Mercer, even have organized support for area foundations so that information and fund raising strategies can be shared. Educational foundations generally solicit support from affluent individuals, other foundations, and businesses, although some foundations also use smaller scale fundraisers too. Companies like Johnson & Johnson, Patriot Media, Merrill Lynch, and others have actively supported educational foundations with substantial contributions. Individuals who can afford to give upwards of $1000 a year often provide a solid base of money and grants from other foundations can be icing on the cake. Established foundations supporting New Jersey school districts might take in anywhere between many tens of thousands of dollars to many hundreds of thousands of dollars in the course of a year. Princeton Educational Foundation is already working on endowments! And, where does all this money go? Educational foundations serve the needs of school districts and by law grants must be accepted by the school board. As such, money donated for specific projects, programs or items must be consistent with the goals of the school district. Very often it is the “extras” such as band uniforms or instruments, sports facilities, books, technology items, and the like which are funded by the grants. Mini-grants to teachers and programs stressing the unique interest of a particular business-donor are also high on the list. It is the things that cannot easily be funded by the regular budget that foundations excel at providing. To hear the trustees of educational foundations tell it, the process can be daunting but also highly rewarding. Success begets success. As a foundation becomes modestly successful, the opportunity exists for enormous growth. In an area where there is a base of individual donors and the potential for large corporate donors, a foundation can raise enough money to be a major contributor to the success of a school system. An excellent archived audio interview from February 2006 with trustees from some foundations in Mercer County can be heard from: http://www.moneytalk1350.net/upload/popfile.asp?fid=21620061048571 An archived article from the Morris County Daily Record is also eye-opening: http://www.dailyrecord.com/backtoschool/04/ The article details, among other things, a $500,000 grant from Pfizer to the Morris Educational Foundation which used the money for a high school level medical science academy. Such figures are not common, but it does show what is possible with a strong foundation. Readington is an affluent area with plenty of individuals and businesses capable and probably willing to contribute something beyond municipal taxes toward our schools. Is it time to take advantage of this interest and generosity? It is well past time. With S1701 and other budget constraints nipping at the heels of our school district, it is madness not to vigorously pursue additional funds which could provide the kind of special programs and needed infrastructure our school district requires for true excellence. Our school board must take the required steps now or get out of the way so that others can do it for them. Looking for more information? Try these websites (in no particular order) of existing educational foundations in New Jersey:
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