Phenomenal School Support at Record High

Faced with daunting state educational budget cuts from Sacramento, Coronadans and parents from across San Diego came together with record donations of  time, energy, and financial support to provide a fourth  consecutive record year of  supplemental funding for the Coronado Unified School District (CUSD) through the nonprofit Coronado Schools Foundation (CSF).
Click here for funding details.

As the Foundation’s fiscal year winds down with the June 30th close fast approaching, President Jeffrey Kob thanks the community for support that has resulted in more than $330,000 in educational program spending for the public schools and donations are still being processed.  “This year’s continued success reflects how generously the community responded to the great need our school’s face for the upcoming school year,” said Kob.   “Both the Dinner Auction Gala and the Telethon set net fundraising records this year and eighteen families became Friends for Life, committing to $5,000 gifts over five years. Families and community members gave generously, and donations of every amount are appreciated and helped us raise record funding,” he added.  “We’ve launched a revamped website (www.csfkids.org) and continue to work on educating our parents and community members on the need for supplemental funding since property taxes generated no longer stay in Coronado since the passage of Prop 13,” commented CSF Vice President Tim Irving.  “The partnership with the Parent Teacher Groups has really helped our donors know where the funds are being spent and as a result, we have seen a surge in new donors giving this year,” he added.       

 Block Grants Support Site Strategic Plans

A highlight this year included the shift of Block Grant Spending Plans to support each school site’s strategic plan (see School Site Funding Box) with Parent Teacher Groups providing direct classroom support.  Silver Strand Principal Bill Cass notes, “”This division has clarified and articulated the appropriate and meaningful areas of support from both groups, and has been invaluable to all sites in their budgetary planning.  In our case at Silver Strand Elementary, the CSF Block Grant has been critical on a daily basis in our maintaining highly valued programs that are directly tied to our site strategic planning goals of improving student reading comprehension and enrichment opportunities.  Especially during these challenging budgetary times, we literally could not maintain these important programs for our students without CSF’s support and we’re deeply grateful to everyone who has contributed to making this possible!”

Telethon Talent Fills Theatre 

Thanks to the district’s support, another highlight included moving the 20th Annual Telethon Presented by Time Warner Cable from Village Hall to the new CHS Theatre.   “It was truly a night to remember with hundreds of people watching the live acts on stage and throngs more in the CHS Quad enjoying the Senior Class BBQ and the solo Coronado Idol stage,” commented Executive Director Patty Cowan.  “The volunteer support from parents, teachers and community members to make this night a reality as well as the significant financial support from business partners and community members was phenomenal and appreciated”, she added. 

Looking Ahead  

CSF has separated its Friends for Life giving circle from other donations, and as a result, will continue to ask parents for $200/child in the fall with a new Partner in Education Family (PIE) rate of $500 for families with three or more children.  “We realize in today’s economy our schools will continue to need increased funding.  Yet at the same time, we want to be reasonable for larger families,” commented Spiro Chaconas, Foundation Fundraising Chair.  The Foundation is also considering a Heroes Rate for enlisted military families and encourages all families to give what they can as the ultimate goal of the PIE program is 100% family participation.    

“We have responded to the request from the district to increase Technology Resource Teacher (TRT) funding for next year so that the TRTs at CMS and CHS will have more time to work with technology training and support for teachers at the elementary schools as well,” noted Ex Officio Toni Aden.  “At Silver Strand and Village, TRTs will continue to run the computer labs and this added funding will add additional staff development and training.  During my time on the CSF Board, funding this program has had tremendous impact,” she added. 

“We have great facilities thanks to Community Development Agency (CDA) funds but these funds cannot be used for salaries and program support so the increased support from parents is essential,” added Kob.  “In fact, I hope more parents who have the ability will consider stepping up to the Friends for Life giving circle at $1,000 per year.  When you consider the cost of a comparable education in a private school of  $15,000 to $20,000 per year, it’s an excellent value and investment in our children,” he added.

For more information on the Foundation, visit www.csfkids.org or call Executive Director Patty Cowan at 437-8059.