"Annual Teacher Grant and Subject Initiatives Award Ceremony"

The Salem-Keizer Education Foundation capped a busy back to school month by awarding nearly $59,000 in teacher grants and an additional $25,000 for professional development and innovative projects in literacy, science and multi-cultural literacy that enhance learning in the Salem-Keizer School District.

The September 24, 2009 awards also mean the foundation is nearing $1.5 million in investments in Salem-Keizer Public School for the 2009-2010 school year.

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"Tools for School" Supply Drive"

A HUGE thank you to all those who made our first annual “Tools for Schools” event an amazing success. A GoDowntown Community pep rally outside the Foundation’s downtown storefront featuring marching bands from all of the district’s high schools was a fun kickoff to the new school year. The rally also served as the culmination of the “tools for Schools” supply drive. With the help of more than thirty five businesses and organizations, as well as an incredible number of individuals, we were able to collect roughly 51,500 school supply items for donation to the Salem-Keizer School District. Some of the item totals included a whopping 6,119 pencils, 1,846 erasers, over 1,800 folders and binders, 1,768 spiral notebooks, 955 boxes of crayons and 1,507 units of glue. Your time and contributions made all the difference that day and throughout the coming school year for many students who would have otherwise had to do without. We cannot thank you enough!!

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October 1-31	National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
October 7	First Wednesday - Downtown Goes Pink 5-8 pm
October 7-31	Salem's First Annual Artfull Brassiere Event
October 9	Statewide In-service Day
October 11-17	National Share Your Posi+ivi+y Week
October 12	Columbus Day
October 16	National Boss Day
November 1	Daylight Savings Time Ends
November 4	First Wednesday - "Thankful Giving" Winter Blues Concert Series 5-8 pm SAVE THE DATE: Holiday Open House at Where The Sidewalk Beings 5-8
November 11	Veterans Day
November 12	SAVE THE DATE: Crystal Apple Awards Ceremony
November 26	Thanksgiving
December 2	First Wednesday - "Holiday Traditions" Winter Blues Concert Series 5-8 pm
December 25	Christmas

Jenifer Sing - SKEF Gator Brigade Coordinator.

It’s easy for Jenifer to describe why she is a volunteer for the foundation: “I love the kids!”

Jenifer is a Recruiter and Account Manager for Barrett Business Services in Salem as well as a volunteer for SKEF as the Gator Brigade Coordinator.

You may be asking just what does a Gator Brigade Coordinator do exactly? Jenifer coordinates the appearances of the Awesome 3000 gator mascot, GEO. You may have seen GEO appear at the Awesome 3000, First Wednesday Downtown and other Salem-Keizer School District functions.

“The children love GEO”, says Jenifer. “Wherever I go with GEO, the kids always talk about the race, ask for GEO’s autograph or simply ask for a hug and a high five. He always puts a smile on faces, kids and adults alike!”

In addition to Jenifer’s busy life working, volunteering and being wife and mother she enjoys sewing and painting and taking her three children to the library.

Jenifer describes the most rewarding part of being the Gator Brigade Coordinator is, after the event is over, looking back and thinking about the impact that GEO has on the kids and families. “He is a loved gator!”

For more information on how you can become involved with the Gator Brigade please call the SKEF office at (503) 364-2933.

The Great Educators' Circle Luncheon 

The Great Educators’ Circle Luncheon on September 22 netted over $55,000 and would not have been possible without the overwhelming support of individuals and businesses who contribute valuable financial resources, so we can produce the program; treat guests to lunch and guarantee that every dime of the contributions received are tax deductible.

The work of the foundation allows us to meet and get to know some of the most amazing individuals and companies in our community. It is an honor to introduce and acknowledge these champions of education.

Title Sponsor:

• Soderstrom Architects

Presenting Sponsor:

• US Bank

Major Contributors:

• Anderson Shirley Architects, Inc
• Dull Olson Weekes Architects, Inc.
• Heery International, Inc.
• LCG Pence Construction, LLC
• NW Natural Gas
• Sodexo

Benefactors:

• Arbuckle Costic Architects, Inc.
• BAM Agency, Inc.
• Paul Bentley Architect
• Salem Health
• Select Impressions

Media Sponsor:

• Kink Radio

Thirteen district teachers earned regular grants for special projects. The Foundation also awarded four grants specifically supporting its subject initiatives of literacy, multi-cultural literacy and math, science and technology.

On top of the teacher grants, the Foundation committed $15,000 to support professional development for district teachers in 2010, with specific funding for the district’s focus on AVID (Achievement via Individual Determination), a key program in Salem-Keizer secondary schools.

An additional $10,000 will fund project’s to support the District’s common literacy model, specifically BookFlix and Sneek Peaks.

The 2009 Susan Gleason Award went to Salem Heights Elementary’s Katie Nelson and Marcia Zegar. The $4,906 grant will fund “Love of Literacy Through Multiple Modalities” – a project promoting literacy development and school/home partnership. The Susan Gleason Award honors the memory of a Salem-Keizer Education Foundation founding director, and is the most prestigious grant the foundation presents.

 

The Salem-Keizer Education Foundation’s Before and After School Programs are off to a great start! This fall, programs are being offered at Grant, Hallman and Highland Elementary schools and all twelve Middle Schools. Days, times and session offerings vary from school to school. To view the Enrichment Academy School site fall offerings or for more information, visit www.skeducationfoundation.org.

233 Commercial St. NE Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-364-2933 Monday - Saturday 9:30 - 5:30 Directions

First Wednesday at Where The Sidewalk Begins

OCTOBER 7th 5-8 PM - Downtown Goes Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month Featuring: GoDowntown’s “Bras in the City”. Please join us as we participate in Salem’s First Annual Artfull Brassiere Event. This is a fundraiser for local women waiting for breast cancer screenings through the YWCA.  A portion will also benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Greenbaum’s customers and staff designed 33 “artfull” bras that will be displayed in downtown stores from Oct. 7 through Oct. 30. Where the Sidewalk Begins will be featuring "The Birds and the Bees" by Artist Becky Ramos. All featured bras will be for sale with a minimum bid of $75. or a straight purchase of $250. A colorful brochure has been produced and sent to medical offices throughout Salem, as well as being distributed to downtown businesses. A reminder that the minimum bid for each art piece is $75.00 or a direct purchase of $250.00. If all bras are bought at the full price of $250.00, we will be able to provide screenings for 66 of the 100+ women currently in need of help. Auction signup sheets will be in the stores with each art bra.

Showcasing: Poetry and Art, Art and Poetry!

Provided by Salem Art Association and 25 sixth grade boys from Parrish Middle School.

For two months in the spring of 2009, SAA teaching artist Jenica Dutra and SAA teaching poet Efrain Diaz-Horna worked with David Mann’s language arts class at Parrish Middle School in Salem. The students, 25 sixth grade boys, wrote poetry and created art around the theme of “discovery”. They first wrote poems and illustrated them with chalk pastel paintings. They then made second paintings using oil pastels and illustrated them with poems! The culmination of this project was a show of their artwork and poetry reading in Salem Art Association’s professional exhibition gallery and now here at Where the Sidewalk Begins.

Special thanks to the Assistance League of Salem who funded this project and Literacy Arts of Portland who helped make it possible.

We will be showcasing several vendors this month, all having merchandise focused on Breast Cancer Awareness and “going pink.” The majority of the featured vendors are also donating a portion of the sales to Breast Cancer Awareness and/or the Susan G. Komen Foundation. We hope you stop by to help support Breast Cancer Awareness Month and to see “pink” vendors such as Alexa’s Angels, Bella Tees, be-ology tees, Compendium, En-V bags and Pretty Tools to name just a few.

Oct. 11-17 National Share Your Posi+ivi+y Week Attitude is a choice and posi+ivi+y is contagious! Come Join Us In celebrating the importance of staying positive and receive a FREE posi+ivi+ty bracelet with the donation of a new book to help support Reading for All! (While supplies last)

November 4 Where the Sidewalk Begins Holiday Open House 5-8 pm

 

Karma Krause, Membership and Marketing Director – YMCA

The YMCA has been a Great Educator Circle Member Partner since 2007. They offer our GEC members a discounted joining fee. In addition to this GEC partnership, the YMCA partners with SKEF to provide Enrichment Academy Programs for several of the after school programs in the Salem-Keizer School District as well as being a huge collaborator in the Awesome 3000 providing assistance with registration and warming up the kids the day of the race.

Karma has an 8 year old son and says “the nicest thing about working for the YMCA is that it is very family friendly. My son is enrolled in the Y programs and I know he is receiving the very best quality care and is having a lot of fun!”

 With 10 years experience in non-profit management, 7 of those years in Association Membership Management, the YMCA was lucky to snatch Karma up two years ago.

We are so thankful to have a wonderful relationship with the YMCA. If you have an opportunity, stop by the YMCA to see what it’s all about and tell them SKEF sent you.

BECOME A SKEF VOLUNTEER
"When the story of these times gets written, we want it to say that we did all we could, and it was more than anyone could have imagined." - Bono, U2 Lead Singer

It's the human factor that makes SKEF so successful. Volunteer your time to help make a difference to a student, a teacher, or another friend in the community. SKEF volunteers come from all walks of life, including senior citizens, retired professionals, service organizations, business partnerships, and students.

Volunteer opportunities can include clerical work, assisting with a class or workshop and preparing outreach class supplies, or working on one of our many great special events like the AWESOME 3000 or Crystal Apple Awards. If you have a special talent or skill you want to share, we will create an opportunity for you.

If you are interested in learning more about volunteering for SKEF, please contact us at info@skeducationfoundation.org or call (503) 364-2933.

• Faux small and/or skinny trees, garland and wreaths – Call for details
• Plastic totes
• Small ice machine
• Adding machine (printable)
• Plain white copy/printer paper
• Gift cards for print cartridges
• Postage stamps
• Projection screen

Feel free to drop them off at Where the Sidewalk Begins gallery/gift shop at 233 Commercial St. NE Salem, OR. 97301 or call at (503) 364-2933 to make other arrangements.