FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Benchmark One introduces Adopt A School

We thought you might like to share in the excitement that is developing as Adopting schools support their colleagues / friends in New Orleans area schools.   

Surplus and Used Furniture Warehouse Donations:

St. Vrain Valley School District cancelled its fall auction of a warehouse full of surplus and used classroom and office furniture donating all of it to the Adopt A School effort supporting. Included in the surplus are student desks, used file cabinets, lunchroom tables with attached seating, library carrels, tables, preschool and kindergarten chairs and coat racks. In addition, there are several pallets of books selves and library books they will be donating. Traditionally, these things sell for a few dollars or don’t sell at all netting the district very little income.  The staff in operations and maintenance was delighted to see it designated for use by schools that really need them.  Sherri Stephens-Carter and Brenda Kaylor brought the idea to the Superintendent, Randy Zila for a decision. Rex Hartman, Director of Operations and Maintenance is working with us to store everything until we can get the transportation logistics set up.

Adopt-A-School just received an e mail from one elementary school; “Our school lost the entire Middle School campus which housed our 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grade students, and we also lost 3 buildings on our Elementary Campus which included 3 kindergarten classrooms, a 1^st grade classroom, two 3^rd grade classrooms, our Art room, several resource rooms, the computer lab and a library. They need 350 desks for middle school, 105 Kindergarten desks, 35 1^st grade desks and 70 third grade desks.  We have two high schools needing 100 desks each, an elementary school requesting 26 chairs for kindergarten and preschool students, and another asking for 20 desks after running out of them for the additional 126 displaced students attending that school. Given the requests for furniture from New Orleans, we are going to need more than we currently have.  If your district wants to make a donation similar to those described here, please let us know asap as we are in the process of arranging for the trucks and drivers to get the “goods” to New Orleans as soon as it can be arranged.

Thompson Valley School District in Loveland, Superintendent, Dan Johnson and Traci Burtnett, Director of Materials and Procurement have approved donation of classroom furnishings and / or equipment from their surplus warehouse.  The District has approved the donation of classroom furniture to the Adopt-A-School effort.  This donation includes a large number of student desks and other items for use in our’ classrooms.

The District is also supporting individual schools as they adopt our.  Diane Lauer, Principal at Conrad Ball Middle School tells us her school has collected $800 in WalMart cards for their adopted school, St. Ann Elementary School.

Imagine a caravan of trucks loaded with classroom furnishings for students and teachers headed to New Orleans.  What an opportunity for great ways to put these items to such good use! AND terrific PR as well!  Adopted schools are providing “letters of need” with numbers of items needed, when and where they need them and sending huge amounts of appreciation for the support.  The Board for the Professional Development Center of   on the receiving end indicate that there will be lots of help to receive, unload, store and distribute the furniture and equipment to the schools and students who need them. 

School Supplies Headed South:

Steve Schiola, Principal at Cache La Poudre Elementary School in Poudre School District in Ft. Collins and Marilyn St. Pierre, Principal of their adopted elementary school, Christ the King, are heating up the e mail wires as Steve’s faculty gather school supplies in the form of books, pencils, pens, markers, crayons, bulletin board materials, etc. to ship to New Orleans for their students.  Marilyn’s school has enrolled many students displaced by Katrina, both from public and private schools in an effort to “accommodate these families in crisis.”  Steve reported that “as soon as we get a full load, I will ship it to you.  With the help of the district warehouse and my brother who works for a trucking company, we will get it to you in good shape.”  He adds, “One of the staff members is asking her churches chapter of the Knight of Columbus to help. . . My office is filling up with great stuff!”

AAUW (American Association of University Women) Donates Library Books

Dominican High School submitted a request for library books as they lost their entire library to Katrina’s flooding. This past week-end, AAUW held its annual Book Fair with literally thousands of books available for sale.  The organization has collected new and used books since August.  Gayle Rainey, member of the group and former St. Vrain Valley secondary teacher and Literacy Coordinator, arranged for the surplus books from this event to be donated to Dominican to help get their library started again.  They donated more than a thousand books to the school including biographies, classical literature, and selected fiction.

St Vrain Valley School District has donated three pallets full of surplus library books to help at least two elementary schools that lost their libraries get started again.

Other Activities in Progress

We know there are other fund raising events, collections of WalMart cards, etc. from Adopting schools and their staffs in progress.  As you solidify the details, please let us know so we can share your support and ideas with others.

Again, thank you so much for all you are doing for our New Orleans friends.  Requests to be “adopted” continue to come in from the schools so we continue to need additional schools and districts who are interested in joining the Adopt A School effort.

For More Information Contact:

Benchmark One, Inc.
101 Convention Center Drive, Suite 700, Las Vegas, NV 89109
Tel: 800-510-7006
FAX: 303-516-9702