News

Reporter: Jennifer Morejon Writer: Paul Dolan, WINK News

Collier County teacher Sandy Mendoza knows teachers and parents spend a lot of money doing back-to-school shopping, and inflation is worsening the financial stress.

A Southwest Florida non-profit is trying to help ease that financial stress building up on teachers.

“In the beginning of the year it’s about $200 for notebooks, composition books in order to keep things organized, we purchase those things … and throughout the year, with our different activities and projects that we have, we continue to buy things throughout the year,” said Mendoza, a Calusa Park Elementary School teacher for the last 23 years.

“We do purchase a lot of things so our kids feel comfortable and they are not worried. A lot of the students can’t afford them, the families are going through rough times… it’s wonderful to color and draw with brand-new pencils and crayons,” said Mendoza.

Champions For Learning is helping teachers and parents not feel the constriction of the financial stress through their classroom grants. Teachers can apply for up to $2,000 for supplies, field trips, and other special projects.

“I think that so many people are looking for ways to support our teachers and our students,” said Amy Snyder the director of the educator programs for Champions For Learning.

The community and local businesses donated more than $115,000 helping more than 200 teachers in 2021.

“Champion For Learning and the grants they give are a bridge between schools and the community,” said Mendoza.

Champions For Learning is hopeful they can beat the $115,000 in donations this year. Anyone who would like to support the cause can donate to Champions For Learning year round.

Rashaad Vann, Fox 4 Southwest Florida

On average, $750 was spent on school supplies by teachers last year.

Historically, it’s the highest amount ever spent according to the Adopt-A-Classroom website.

“When you think about things that you want for the classroom, there are things we were looking for even yesterday that Amazon currently doesn’t have,” Dr. Cindy Gomez, Collier County Public Schools District TSA said. “So we have to be creative.”

Dr. Gomez talks about the challenges teachers face when trying to come by school supplies.

“Teachers have the ability to say, ‘well I’m going to get creative. This is the way I still can make it happen,’” Gomez said. “But I need A B and C.”

Teachers are able to get grants for supplies to create innovative projects and more for students with the help of the Classroom Grant Opportunity portal held by Champions For Learning.

“They can write that grant up to $2,000 and say ‘this is what I want to do, and this is how many students that it’s going to reach.’” Gomez said.

“It is also an incredible opportunity for our community to get to know our teachers,” Amy Snyder, Director of Educators Programs for Champions For Learning said.

Snyder said residents are able to see what teachers may need and how they can help out.

“The supplies needed to do a school garden and someone who’s excited about gardens is going to say, ‘hey I’m going to get on that,’” Snyder said. “’I’m going to make sure that the school can have this opportunity.’”

“It’s a great way for teachers to reach lots of students in a variety of ways,” Gomez said.

The classroom grant portal is open to the community, anyone is able to donate and see a list of classroom grant requests.

Bank of America announced two Southwest Florida high school seniors were selected as Student Leaders (#BofAStudentLeaders), an eight-week summer internship providing students with firsthand experience in serving their communities. Started in 2004, the prestigious, paid internship recognizes 300 community focused juniors and seniors from across the U.S. annually and offers sessions in workforce skills, leadership, and civic engagement with local nonprofits, including Champions for Learning. As part of the program, they will earn $17 per hour and receive a Chromebook.

If you aren’t familiar with Scholar Bowl, imagine a large group of students that are working to answer questions covering anything from History, Science, Art, even current events. Students that participate in Scholar Bowl are very well-rounded and prepare by studying for these difficult concept questions.

Aaron Chambers, Social Studies teacher at Lely High, gathered 40 of the brightest students on campus and entered as a team for this past years Scholar Bowl. To be successful, the team needed study materials to help them prepare for the competition.

To meet the need of his students, Chambers applied for a Champions for Learning Classroom Grant and received funds donated from Jeff & Ida Margolis, that allowed him to purchase the necessary items. Chambers shared, “We have the framework in place and have been recruiting the right kids to make up for our deficiencies this past season. Having the student guides should go a long way in helping prepare the students to complete in our next season”.

From the community support of the donation, the Lely High team came in 4^th in the region. This is a wonderful accomplishment for the students and an encouraging reminder that hard work pays off.

The outcome of this classroom grant is a great reminder to students and members of Collier County how the impact of one can change the lives of many.

Collier County teachers! The classroom grants portal is now open for submissions. You can apply for a grant here.

All grants will be made public for community based funding for the 2022-2023 school year starting on July 19th.

In the meantime, support classroom grants in Collier County by purchasing a Support Education license plate. When a Florida resident purchases or renews their Support Education specialty tag, $20 goes directly back to support schools, teachers and students in the county where the tag is registered.  In Collier County, Champions For Learning, The Education Foundation of Collier County, invests 100% of those proceeds into classroom grants.

Lindsay Lydon is a graduate of Champions For Learning’s Take Stock in Children mentoring and scholarship program. She is currently a junior at Florida Gulf Coast University studying marketing and advertising and is interning with Champions For Learning this summer.

Many of us take our independence for granted and don’t realize that simple tasks may be challenges for others. In our community, students with learning or behavioral disabilities are assigned to special education classrooms where devoted teachers work with transition students on skills to help them build real world knowledge.

Naples High School teachers Nicole Rennie, Scott Barham, and Jen Szcepkowski applied for a Champions For Learning Classroom Grant to fund a fun and engaging classroom activity for their special needs students. Three 12^th grade classes were provided cooking supplies provided by The Poinciana Civic Association, Brad & Phyllis Estes, Michael Mitchell, and Margaret Carlson fund.

The cooking activities allowed their students to follow directions, collecting the items by making a shopping list and preparing the recipe. Items included cooking tacos, pancakes, eggs and toast, baked goods, spaghetti with garlic bread and many more. “Our students love doing anything with food because at the end they get to enjoy whatever they cooked. It also provides a time for us to practice our manners and social skills”, stated Rennie.

The hands-on approach to learning is very engaging and will be a memorable skill for these students.

Collier County teachers! The classroom grants portal is now open for submissions. You can apply for a grant here.

All grants will be made public for community funding starting on July 19th.

In the meantime, support classroom grants in Collier County by purchasing a Support Education license plate. When a Florida resident purchases or renews their Support Education specialty tag, $20 goes directly back to support schools, teachers and students in the county where the tag is registered.  In Collier County, Champions For Learning, The Education Foundation of Collier County, invests 100% of those proceeds into classroom grants.

Lindsay Lydon is a graduate of Champions For Learning’s Take Stock in Children mentoring and scholarship program. She is currently a junior at Florida Gulf Coast University studying marketing and advertising and is interning with Champions For Learning this summer.

Recent Champions For Learning graduates will not have to worry about how they will get around their college campus in the fall thanks to Bikes for Tykes. The organization provided over 30 refurbished bikes for recent graduates of Champions For Learning’s scholarship and mentoring program on Friday.

Bikes have become a necessity for most college students in Florida. With college campuses being so wide-spread, having a way of transportation is crucial. Many students will not have a car while in college, making a bike their only form of transportation.

“Being able to transport myself from class to class every morning is extremely important, especially so I’m not late,” said Isabella Viquez, Champions For Learning 2022 graduate. “I currently don’t have a car or anything and I am moving to a different city away from family. So it’s really important to be able to transport myself around the cities and be able to know exactly it is where I am living and the area around me.”

For many soon-to-be college students without a car, their next and only option would be to walk. When asked what his backup plan would be if he did not receive a bike today, Manuel Castro, Champions For Learning 2022 graduate, said, “I probably would’ve walked for my first semester which is pretty far. My business class is almost 20 minutes away from my dorm.”

This is the second year Bikes for Tykes has partnered with Champions For Learning to give away bikes to high school graduates.  Bikes for Tykes has been busy collecting used bikes, refurbishing them and then storing those bikes for students.

“We work very closely with Champions For Learning to see how many they need. How many are boys and how many are girls. Then we go back to see what we have in stock. As we get them in, we set them aside,” said John Whipple, director at Bikes for Tykes.

Whipple says on top of giving away bikes today, he was also able to teach some students how to ride a bike.

“It’s one thing to work in the shop and fix the tires and fix the various things that go wrong with a bike, but to be here and provide that bike that you fixed and see that smile on their face. It is just amazing,” Dave Pascale, Vice President, Bikes for Tykes.

Bikes for Tykes also provided helmets for every student who received a bike today. In order to do provide helmets, the Bikes for Tykes staff became certified to fit students for the correct helmet.

Champions works hard to always support the success of our students and knows that these new bikes will be an essential piece of their college success.

The popular and adored jewelry store, Kendra Scott, is supporting teachers and students within Collier County through a special event benefitting Champions For Learning.

Saturday, June 25th from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., 20% of the proceeds made at the Kendra Scott store located at Waterside Shops will go towards supporting Champions For Learning.

This initiative is part of the Kendra Gives Back program. Taking the fashion world by storm, Kendra Scott uses her fame and fortune for a good cause as much as she can. The program allows community members to host in-store events for causes and organizations that work to improve health & wellness, education & entrepreneurship, and empowerment.

In addition to the in-store event, Kendra Scott Gives Back will also take place online.

Anytime from June 25th-June26th, when you purchase from the Kendra Scott website using code GIVEBACK-CBAOJ 20% of your purchase will go towards student and educator programs at Champions For Learning.

This is a great way to purchase some beautiful items for yourself and others for a great cause.

Support Champions For Learning at the Kendra Gives Back event, we hope to see you on Saturday, June 25th. Kendra Scott is located at Waterside Shops, 5485 Tamiami Trail, between Sunglass Hut and White House/Black Market.

Our entire community is so grateful for having had Alan Korest as a champion for teachers, children, and their learning in Collier County.

His unwavering curiosity fueled his limitless desire to learn and inspired him to set that example for generations of children and families who will thrive into the future.

Alan’s legacy of leadership around building a culture rooted in learning was recognized in 2013-14 when he became a Heart of the Apple recipient through Champions For Learning.

Click here to read his full obituary and contributions of a life well-lived.

Highlands Elementary School’s science teacher Mara Shaffer recognized the learning approach her students needed and this past July, applied for a Champions For Learning Classroom Grant. Shaffer wanted a way to “incorporate fun, instructional videos throughout the curriculum” and requested a one-year subscription service from Brain Pop and Flocabulary for her curriculum.

As students continue to learn through tablets and other devices, teachers are turning toward supplemental instruction videos which helps visual learners engage in a learning approach that benefits them.

Beverly Feagin, a committed member of our Champions community, funded this grant and supported Shaffer’s request. “Giving to Classroom Grants is a wonderful way to show appreciation to our teachers and to help them create innovative learning experiences. My family was a big supporter of education and I can’t think of a better way to carry on that legacy. It’s a wonderful feeling being able to contribute in any way possible,” said Feagin.

These services are professional educational websites that provide informational videos for students K-12 to help them learn and memorize classroom content. Shaffer wanted to benefit her classes and knew these videos would allow her students to “be more engaged throughout the lesson and will use the mnemonic strategy to remember key concepts being taught across the curriculum”.

The subscriptions purchased through the grant were used between multiple classes covering language arts, science, and social studies lessons. Because of this Classroom Grant, elementary students were able to learn in a fun and interactive way to help them remember class material. This is just one example of how a Classroom Grant can impact students in Collier County.

Collier County teachers! The classroom grants portal is now open for submissions. You can apply for a grant here.

All grants will be made public for community funding starting on July 19th.

In the meantime, support classroom grants in Collier County by purchasing a Support Education license plate. When a Florida resident purchases or renews their Support Education specialty tag, $20 goes directly back to support schools, teachers and students in the county where the tag is registered.  In Collier County, Champions For Learning, The Education Foundation of Collier County, invests 100% of those proceeds into classroom grants.

Lindsay Lydon is a graduate of Champions For Learning’s Take Stock in Children mentoring and scholarship program. She is currently a junior at Florida Gulf Coast University studying marketing and advertising and is interning with Champions For Learning this summer.