CFSD Foundation - Where Donations Go
Annual Fund and Endowment Funds
Annual Fund
Our students have 20th century funding and 21st century needs. Your donation gets us there sooner. The Annual Fund is helping our school district move forward into 21st Century learning. Currently, the Catalina Foothills School District Foundation is working with our community and with school administration to address critical needs in the following areas:
Creating 21st Century Classrooms – Technology is only a wise investment if it changes something about the way students learn, opens new doors and possibilities, and/or helps them engage in their learning experiences. There are many technologies that, if put into the hands of a dynamic teacher, will engage students in their learning experiences. Interactive whiteboards/panels, laptop computers, and classroom audio systems are all solid technology investments that can make learning a richer, more meaningful experience.
The 21st Century Classroom should have the following:
· Laptop computer for the teacher and a 10- laptop workstation for students
· Interactive whiteboard
· Digital camera for documenting work and digitally sharing information
· Projection unit and lamp replacements
· Amplification system (amplifier, speakers, hand-held microphone) for broadcasting audio from the internet and recording information (for a podcast, for example)
· Laser printer (shared among a group of classrooms)
· Wireless response system (allows students to select options from a hand-held device to communicate one-on-one with a teacher during instruction. For example: a teacher trying to spot check each student’s level of understanding might put a question on the interactive white board and ask for a response. The teacher would instantly, and privately, know who needed help before moving on.)
· Cart to store and move equipment.
· Software (MS Office Suite, can be shared among several computers)
· Concept mapping software (e.g. Inspiration)
· Scanner
· Wireless hub
Cost: $20,000 per classroom, K-12
Teacher Development and Retention: Training for the 21st Century –The most important factor in a child’s learning is the quality of the instruction. There is a rich culture of learning among our teachers, who are strongly committed to improving their knowledge of instructional practices that ensure every student learns at a high level. There are many Foothills courses and programs that bring teachers together in professional learning settings to translate research-based strategies to daily practice in the classroom. Here are three:
· Groups of 10 teachers will participate in up to seven days of training and planning to create a 21st century learner-centered environment in their classrooms. A trained facilitator guides teachers through academic activities that reinforce instruction in core subjects as well as 21st century skills. The teachers learn how to use technology tools and real-world examples to master content and develop learning skills. They develop a classroom website for parent and student communications, use various technologies including interactive whiteboards, laptops, digital cameras and video, projectors and other equipment identified by participants that are relevant to their area of teaching. Follow-up sessions are included.
Cost: $15,000 to $20,000 for each team of 10 teachers
· Enrollment in honors and AP classes has increased dramatically in the last year, resulting in the need for more sections of these advanced classes, and increasing the need to train additional teachers to teach these classes.
Cost: $ 1,500 per teacher for AP training
· To train teachers in a culture that is a major force in the world today, the school district is sending middle and high school teachers to China to visit schools, study and engage in faculty-led discussions of Chinese politics, economics, language, culture and history.
Cost: varies. Teachers must apply and pay a registration fee.
Avoiding Increases in Class Size – The CFSD Foundation has a history of helping to make class sizes optimal for student learning.
Keeping class sizes small in elementary school requires hiring an additional teacher when needed.
Cost: $45,000 per teacher
The size of high school writing classes, including those that are combined writing and history programs, have been reduced to 21 students to allow teachers more time to give effective feedback on writing assignments.
Cost: $45,000 per teacher. One additional teacher needed per grade, 9 through 12.
Adding a section of a course -- music, AP, honors, a remedial course -- is sometimes necessary to decrease class size or allow more students to participate.
Cost: $9,000 to teach an additional section of a course
Our students have 20th century funding and 21st century needs. Your donation gets us there sooner.
Endowment Funds
The Foundation has established two endowment funds to provide permanent sources of funding for programs in our schools. Donations earmarked for our endowment funds are invested with the original principal left untouched, and only the investment earnings available for donation to the school district. With consistent levels of funding guaranteed, our students can continue to benefit from a broad and varied and curriculum year after year, independent of state funding.
The Endowment for General Educational Excellence – Enables the Foundation to enhance the level of annual funding to continue the depth and breadth of course offerings, class sizes and other program features that distinguish our schools with educational excellence.
Goal: $1 million
The Endowment for Literacy and the Fine Arts – Built upon a donation by the Stocker Foundation, this endowment directs earnings to preservation and enhancement of programs in music, dance, drama, literacy and visual arts.
Goal: $1 million
