Local Northeast Ohio online teacher supply company SupplyMe.com donated $10,000 to the Stow Schools Foundation for the creation of a named teacher supply grant fund. The Foundation accepted the donation and matched it to bring the total amount in the fund to $20,000. The Stow Schools Foundation will begin accepting applications from eligible teachers for classroom supply grants at the end of July for the 2018-2019 school year.
Phil Johnson, owner of SupplyMe.com, said his admiration for the work and dedication of teachers led to the donation. “Teachers are amazing. They’re spending significant amounts of their own money on supplies for their classrooms to ensure their students have the best learning environment. Our goal at SupplyMe is to equip teachers with everything they need for their classrooms, so we couldn’t have been more excited when the Stow Schools Foundation approached us about the idea of creating the SupplyMe.com Teacher Fund to provide local teachers with classroom supplies and learning materials.”
The Stow Schools Foundation recently shook up its executive leadership earlier this year electing a new President and Vice President after long-time President Donald Coughlin stepped down. Stow high school alum, current resident and father of six Shon Christy was elected as President and Stow Law Director Amber Zibritosky was elected as Vice President respectively. Stow resident and alum Kirsten Jagger stayed on as Treasurer and longtime Board member and Stow resident Ann Lucco stayed on as Secretary.
The Stow Schools Foundation was founded in 1985 and has a long history of distributing scholarships to graduating seniors from Stow Munroe Falls High School. In 2018 alone, the Foundation awarded a total of $22,000 to 34 graduating seniors. Foundation President Shon Christy explained the organization’s mission, stating “with the rising cost of tuition and public school funding dwindling, we feel strongly that the Stow Schools Foundation can help fill the gap and support both our incredible students and amazing educators in our city. Our board has set some aggressive goals on new scholarships for both our students going to traditional higher education institutions and trade schools. Additionally, we are creating more grants for our teachers, like our partnership with SupplyMe.com, to help supply their classrooms and attend new and innovative continuing education opportunities.”
Vice President Zibritosky further explained that the organization is in the process of revamping its structure and has created a series of committees each responsible to the Board in the areas of fundraising, marketing, scholarships, and board development. “We want to expound upon the tremendous leadership of former President Don Coughlin and increase our fund size from $300,000 currently to $1 million within the next ten years.” stated Zibritosky. “Meeting our goal will not be easy but our new tiered structure, investment strategy, and the outpouring of community support we received thus far, we believe, make our goal achievable.”
The Foundation has created a new Facebook page and website. The Foundation encourages all parents, residents and alumni to take a look and contact President Shon Christy if they are interested in volunteering, joining a committee, or donating to the Stow Schools Foundation.