Schools

Clarke County School District honors 3rd annual Impact Award recipients

These local organizations are making a difference in the lives of children, school officials said.

By Anisa Sullivan Jimenez

The Clarke County School District will honor six organizations with the 3rd annual Impact Awards at this Thursday’s 6 p.m. Board Meeting. This is an honor designed to recognize organizations that have made significant, lasting and ongoing contributions to the students of the Clarke County School District.

“The organizations that have received this year’s Impact Awards have gone above and beyond in supporting our students, teachers and staff, and they deserve to be recognized at a community level,” said Superintendent Philip D. Lanoue. “This award is our way of thanking these organizations for making a real difference in the lives of Clarke County students.”

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Organizations to be recognized are:

  •     Athens Church is a partner of Cleveland Road Elementary School, and they have provided support to the school in a variety of ways. Over the past two years, they have: provided mentors who meet weekly with students and serve as role models, collected school supplies, sponsored families and provided holiday gifts, donated signs to hang on the walls throughout the school supporting monthly character education, donated breakfast and lunch to teachers and much more. They made a significant donation this past school year that helped fund grade-level field trips, made a school sound system update possible and funded netbooks for students to use in math and reading.

Compass Church has been an active partner with Fowler Drive Elementary School for seven years.  Specifically, church members have provided holiday gifts for families, started weekly English lessons for parents, provided a mobile food pantry, served as volunteers for school events, served on the School Council, provided gift cards for teachers, donated uniforms and school supplies, assisted in packing and unpacking when Fowler moved from its old building to its current one, provided translators for parent-teacher conferences and much more!

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Georgia United Credit Union has supported the school district in countless ways. They have provided meals for New Teacher Orientation, sponsored the Kicks for Cash program where high schools can earn up to $2,000 during football season, participated in Adopt a Class, served as a sponsor of the Foundation for Excellence Awards Banquet, sponsored a Clarke County School District billboard this past year, provided the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program, established the Teachers Make a Difference Program – which a Clarke County teacher won this past year, donated school supplies, have the Pay for A’s program for students, offered free financial seminars to school district staff and students, offered employee discounts and much more.

·Green Acres Baptist Church has partnered with schools and the district in various meaningful ways. Members are a daily presence at Cedar Shoals High School and serve in a variety of capacities – volunteer, tutor and field trip chaperone. Students specifically request Green Acres members for their positivity and helpfulness. The church also provides regular volunteers to Hilsman Middle School. The use of their fellowship hall was donated for the 2011 Seeing is Believing bus tour.

Interfaith Hospitality Network of Athens (IHN) is the only organization in the area that provides shelter where families can stay together. IHN works with homeless families, helping them find a safe place to stay, secure a job and get back on their feet. An organization representative meets with a Clarke County representative each week to discuss the students being served and ensure they are receiving needed services. Organization representatives work with schools to ensure that children being served by them are successful, and they provide any material support that is necessary.

Rack Room Shoes raised almost $6,000 during their annual fundraising event this past year, the majority of which went to Clarke County schools. These funds ensure that hundreds of children representing every school are able to have shoes that fit and are appropriate for school and play.


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