Since 1989 Avon Maitland has been the envy of other Canadian school boards as we’ve had a charitable partner at our side providing over-and-above opportunities for our students and fund development expertise to our parent councils.
The Foundation for Education Perth Huron is the earliest organization of its kind in the Province and one of only a handful across the country.
The $70 000+ in funds that they need to fuel their outreach – in the form of workshops, grants and programming – is raised through local community support every year.
We know that Foundation staff enjoy and believe wholeheartedly in their work but we also know that encouragement can be drawn from the day-to-day joys of knowing students, offering guidance and witnessing their growth. The Foundation, as a community/school connector and supporting player in education, is more or less set apart from this experience. Needless to say, we were thrilled that proof of their impact was found in the story of one our former students.
From the Foundation’s Executive Director:
“When you provide hands-on experiences in life skills and the arts to thousands of students each year it’s difficult to gauge the effect you are having on any of them.
As a charitable organization that lies just outside of the education system, we’re not privy to what becomes of students as they grow up. We always appreciate hearing from a parent or teacher how one of our workshops lit a flame in a child or provided a path of hope and growth for another, but recognizing the fruit found in a young adult that stems from our work is near impossible.
Imagine our joy then when we found Kristen Nuhn.
Currently pursuing her Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Illinois under full scholarship, Kristen described for us how experiencing one of our ART / LIFE workshops at 10 years of age changed the course of her life.”
It’s through experiencing a Foundation workshop in Grade 5, that I discovered that there was a place for me.
For more information on the Foundation or to find out how you too can help other children find their place, please visit the Foundation for Education website and follow them on Facebook.