ASC announces new fund supporting CMS schools

In yesterday’s Charlotte Observer, I was very happy to read an article about a new fund to help provide field trips and other cultural activities for Charlotte-Mecklenburg School students. As we all know there have been many cuts in place to the schools and the libraries and the children are the ones who lose out. Many businesses are pledging millions of dollars to help support these children. According to December 13th Charlotte Observer article, “ASC launches $1 million fund for schools,”

The council has $600,000 pledged to what officials hope will be a new $1 million education fund, which will supplement the annual campaign that starts Jan. 19. Bank of America and the Wells Fargo Foundation have each pledged $200,000, while the Duke Energy Foundation and the C.D. Spangler Foundation have pledged $100,000 each.

The new drive strives to plug a hole left by cuts in public money, as well as a fund-raising slump and dwindling endowment earnings. The ASC now spends about $500,000 to provide opportunities for CMS students, compared with $1.5 million in previous years, said President Scott Provancher.

The result: CMS students are missing chances to visit new uptown arts museums and the newly renovated Discovery Place…

We are excited to hear about this fund, and it is also coming at a time when we ourselves are striving to begin our Beyond the Classroom initiative. We are hoping to raise money in order to send our abused and neglected foster children to one week of camp, or any extracurricular activity of their choice. Many children are going without these opportunities as their schools begin to end field trips, and art classes and choir or band classes are disappearing from our schools. In my personal opinion, children need these activities in order to raise their self-esteem and help them realize that they are talented young individuals. With such an emphasis being placed on academic grades lately, these activities are sure to help children feel better about themselves and their abilities. In order for our children to reach their full potential they need these opportunities.

We are very excited about the ASC fund for schools, and our own Beyond the Classroom initiative. It is great to see that our local corporations, and our citizens, recognize the importance of art, science, field trips and extracurricular activities.