by KIM HILSENBECK
The Hays CISD Education Foundation will hit the links Monday for the 10th anniversary of its annual golf tournament.
Amid budget cuts and a reduction in federal funding, Hays CISD counts on money from the Education Foundation. David Salazar, the foundation’s president, said the nonprofit provides the district with funding it wouldn’t have otherwise.
The foundation, started in 1998, is a community-based, volunteer run organization. The funds raised augment existing school programs.
“Most of the money we raise comes from individual donations,” Salazar said.
Private companies also contribute; Salazar said the foundation pursues public-private relationships to provide additional funds, such as Dell Computer gift cards for graduating seniors.
Events such as Denim & Diamonds, the foundation’s annual fall gala, as well as Monday’s golf tournament, bring in about $100,000, according to Salazar. In exchange, the district provides office space and staff time for the foundation.
Each semester, the foundation gives out about $20,000 in innovative teaching grants. So far, those grants totaled more than $350,000. Past grants included $4,000 for a “Wildscape Project” to put native Texan landscaping on a portion of the Lehman High School campus.
Another $3,195 was split among the district’s five middle schools to implement the “Read it Forward” program to bring diverse students together through a love of reading.
The “Blast Off” program at Camino Real Elementary used its $3,823 grant to take 100 fifth graders to the Johnson Space Center in Houston; students then created a multi-media technology presentation to showcase what they learned.
The foundation also presents the Teacher of the Year awards.
Salazar said a $200,000 endowment established by Dale and Libby Linebarger will help the foundation provide financial awards well into the future.
