By Kallie Sulanke—
Muncie, Ind. – Eight local K-12 public schools in Delaware County received a total of $182,000 in the third phase of the K-12 School Technology Resilience Initiative. The initiative supports longer-term and equitable solutions for technology resilience for students and schools.
The initiative kicked off in June with the support of the Funders Forum Collaborative, a group of funders across Delaware County convened by The Community Foundation.
“The need for equitable technology solutions was exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic,” said Bryan Rausch, superintendent of Liberty-Perry Community Schools. “Funding through the K-12 School Technology Resilience Initiative has helped us quickly close technology-related gaps and ensure that our students and community can continue learning whether in the classroom or while at home.”
An initial round of funding was provided in June to the schools to support research and planning efforts. In July, school systems were invited to submit their unique plan to address the needs of their students and teachers to access and utilize technology to enhance education. Requests included equipment, connectivity, software, and people resources. Based on the requests received, schools were awarded grants through a second round of funding in August. The school systems were able to provide any updates to their needs or plans in advance of the third round of funding. Based on their updated requests, schools were awarded the following grants during this round of funding in December, 2020.
Burris Laboratory School received $11,000 to support connectivity, and hardware for teachers and students.
Cowan Community Schools received $31,830 to support teacher training and recording equipment.
Daleville Community Schools received $30,000 to support hardware to implement their 1:1 initiative.
Delaware Community Schools received $10,000 to support curriculum subscriptions.
Liberty-Perry Community Schools received $29,130 to support curriculum equipment and people resources for homework help.
Muncie Community Schools received $37,776 to support hotspots for student connectivity.
Wes-Del Community Schools received $22,264 to support connectivity, recording equipment, and hardware.
Yorktown Community Schools received $10,000 to support curation for virtual curriculum.
The Community Foundation and members of the Funders Forum, along with generous community donors, contributed $241,000 to be granted to the schools through the K-12 School Technology Initiative across all three phases. In addition, the K-12 School Technology Resilience Initiative is a sponsored project of United Way of Delaware, Henry and Randolph Counties and Indiana United Ways, with funding provided by Lilly Endowment Inc.
About The Community Foundation
The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Inc. encourages philanthropy, assists donors in building an enduring source of charitable assets, and exercises leadership in directing resources to enhance the quality of life for residents of Muncie and Delaware County. Since 1985, community members and businesses have helped the Foundation grow our endowment to $66 million. Using the earnings on the endowment, the Foundation distributes grants to nonprofit organizations, including scholarships to support students through post-secondary education. To date, the Foundation has awarded more than $57 million to enhance the quality of life of the residents of Muncie and Delaware County.
About Funders Forum
As early as 1997, the Funders Forum convened as a way for local funders to discuss community issues and hear from nonprofit organizations about their programs and services. Since then, the group has evolved to include collaborative grantmaking. Members with the Funders Forum Collaborative include Ball Brothers Foundation, George and Frances Ball Foundation, The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Delaware Advancement Corporation/Muncie Delaware County Chamber of Commerce, First Merchants Corporation, Indiana Michigan Power, Harry and Janet Kitselman Fund, Kiwanis Club of Muncie, Maxon Foundation Fund, Muncie Altrusa Foundation, MutualBank Charitable Foundation, Office of Community Development – City of Muncie, Old National Bank Foundation, Psi Iota Xi, Rotary Club of Muncie, Hamer and Phyllis Shafer Foundation, Tri Kappa, United Way of Delaware, Henry, and Randolph Counties, and the Sherman and Marjorie Zeigler Foundation. Applications to the Funders Forum Collaborative and the K-12 Technology Resilience Initiative are accepted by invitation only.
