Newspapers / Philanthropy Journal of North … / Aug. 1, 1996, edition 1 / Page 13
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August 1996 Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina 13 Making connections Trian^e youngsters raise funds for charity An elementary school class in Raleigh raised money for charity by staging a play - and in the process learnt a lot about their community. By Todd Cohen Raleigh In the spring of 1995, teacher Terri Stephens’ second-graders at Oak Grove Elementary School in Ralei^ began planning a class pro ject for the following school year to build on their social studies focus on the community. Last fall, as third-graders, the youngsters decided their project would be to produce a play and con tribute the proceeds to charity The result was a dinner-theater production of “Robin Hood” in June that netted $1,125.68. The funds were split evenly between two charities - Safechild, a child-abuse prevention agency in Ralei^, and the Governor Morehead School for the Blind, also in Ralei^. The project, which also helped buy a backi-op for the school stage, generated revenues throu^ the sde of tickets, as well as ads purchased by local businesses in the printed program. Stephens also secured grants of $500 from Carolina Rjwer & Light Co. and $200 from the Wake Education Partnership. All the students helped research and select the production theme, and each student researched and recom mended a charity to the class. After the students voted to contribute both to Safechild and the Morehead School, representatives of both orga nizations visited the class. In selling tickets to the play the students talked about the charities. The students also staffed commit tees that wrote an original play based on the Robin Hood tale, handled food and publicity, and produced scenery. props and costumes. The entire project, says Stephens, touched on all third-grade academic subjects and enabled the students to see the interconnections between academic subjects, and between aca demics and the real world. Kaitlin Anderson, co-president of the class - now fourth-graders at the year-round school - says the project taught her the importance of “work ing together, because if one person wasn’t doing their part, then it would be confusing for the other people.” Scott Simerly the other co-presi dent, says the project “tau^t me a lot about how to help our community Probably in the future I’ll keep on helping people.” Katelyn Montague, the student who researched Safechild, agreed; “I learned you should help your commu nity and I think in the future I will keep helping my community” Orange Communities in Schools growing Now in its sec ond year. Orange County Communities in Schools is preparing to expand. 'The pro gram, which aims to keep young sters in school, plans this sum mer to kick off a Karen Wallace $100,000 capital campaign and dou ble the number of students in the pro gram to 140. 'The nonprofit serves the county and Chapel HiU-Carrboro school sys tems. It began at Standback Middle School in Hillsborough and now has added Culbreth Middle School in Chapel Hill. Karen Wallace, the program’s executive director, formerly was youth program coordinator for the Orange County Dispute Settiement Center and before that, in 1992, was the first Teacher of the Year for the merged Durham pubUc school sys tem. Marguerite Klein, vice president for corporate communications and marketing tor Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina in Durham, chairs the organization’s fundraising committee. Fbr information call (919) 644-6247. Nea Forum Continued from page 1 son - no Carnegie or Rockefeller - who can do it aU, and government budgets are shrinking, not expand ing. It is up to the people in their com munities to ensure the survival and blossoming of the arts ri^t where they live.” The NEA action plan, based on ideas, opinions and other feedback from ‘American Canvas,” wiE be pub- hshed next spring. Other forums in June, July and October are focusing on aspects of the arts in which the host communi ties excel. Previous forum hosts were Columbus, Ohio; Los Angeles; Salt Lake City; and Rock Hill, S.C. Forums will be held in October in San Antonio, Texas, and Miami. Charlotte was chosen as a partici pant because of its success in using the arts to help boost economic growth. During the first roundtable dis cussion, “What Is the Bottom Line? The Arts as a Community Economic Resource,” panel members included Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, Charleston Mayor Joseph Riley Jr. and Maryland sculptor Mary Ann Mears. Issues raised in the roundtable included the lack of public interest in the arts and the huge economic role that the arts can play in revitalizing a city. Charleston’s Spoleto Festival, REey said, was responsible for rein vigorating the city’s downtown area. There are many instances when pub lic support for the arts has been repaid three-fold, panelists said: People are more attracted to an area with a rich cultural environment, and that translates into more jobs, more money being spent, and a greater Alexander upbeat about arts At a news confcrcm-e July 18 dur ing the “American Cianvas” forum, .lane Alexander, chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, lamented that the majority of Congre.ss still doe*! not recognize the importance of the tirts to c(mimunity develo])ment. Alexander said she did not think her efforts to educate legislators on the iU-ts had worked. “I think that if 1 had fully suc ceeded, we wouldn’t luivtj received the cuts.” she said, referring to the 40 percent funding cut Congre.ss handed the NEA in UiDf!. But, she added, she hopes that sup])orf for the arts will increase in coming years. “Things are cyclical in our coun try” she said. .Mexandor also said she had hi’en surprmed by the large number of leg islators who participated in the Charlotte forum. The only other forum in which political leaders played an integral part was in Cohimbus, Ohio, she said. “The mayors are our best Mends ” she said. The action plan to come from forum feedback will be written in two parts. One part wiB isolate patterns across U.S. art communities and make recommendations on combat ing them. The second part wiD be “the hands-on stufi;” The plan will take strategies that worked in some cities and try to integrate them into a blueprint for a nationwide initiative, Alexander said. Stephanie Greer general interest m the city’s heritage. But it is also necessary not only to show Americans what the arts can do for them, but to have the arts commu nity stand up and fight for its own survival, panelists said. “'The artists need to come forward and lead,” Mears said. Also, the public needs to view the arts as a fundamental portion of their lives, Riley said. The problem is that Americans don’t, McCrory said, even thou^ the arts have an effect on everything from education to public safety The second roundtable featured panelists such as artist Audrey Flack; William Ivey, director of the Country Music Foundation; and James Borders, executive director of the Louisiana Division ofthe Arts. Panelists focused on the importance of leaving a legacy for future genera tions and the fact that much of the legacy of the 20th century, such as furniture, languages, documents, dance and song, has been lost. The “American Canvas” pro gram’s budget of approximately $220,000 is privately funded in part by Binney & Smith Inc., Coca-Cola Co., the Geoige Gund Foundation, the J. Paul Getty 'Trust and the Sara Lee Foundation. Other donations come from private individuals and busi nesses in each city In Charlotte, sup port for the forum came from First Union National Bank, NationsBank Corp., Transamerica Reinsurance, the North Carolina Arts Council, the North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, and the Arts and Science Council of Charlott^ecklenburg. 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Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina (Raleigh, N.C.)
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Aug. 1, 1996, edition 1
13
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