Washington County, OH – At the end of September, Marietta Community Foundation reached its goal of raising $60,000 to award the six local K-12 school districts in Washington County, at $10,000 each.

Of the six school local districts, four have already submitted their proposals to the Foundation. The proposals from Marietta City School District, Fort Frye Local School District, Warren Local School District, and Belpre City School District have all been approved by the Foundation’s Board of Directors.

“It was great to see how each school is working to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and keep our students safe,” said Dr. Bret Frye, current Chairman of the Foundation’s Board.

Following the success of the $60K For 6 campaign, the Foundation requested each district wait to assess their needs before creating and submitting their proposals. Funds could be requested for a variety of uses including; cleaning supplies, PPE, technology, daily meals for remote students, student success, and/or mental health services.

“We wanted these funds to be easily accessible to the school districts,” said Heather Allender, President & CEO of the Foundation. “Flexibility was the key with this campaign… we knew different school districts would have different needs. This is why we broad parameters for how these funds could be utilized.”

Each district will receive $10,000 toward their approved proposal:

Marietta City School District

•  The purchase of additional PPE equipment including signage, gloves, masks, and other COVID-19 related items.

“Marietta City School District is blessed to be supported by our community,” said Will Hampton, Superintendent of Marietta City Schools. “Receiving $10,000 from the Marietta Community Foundation will go a long way to help offset unanticipated expenses that have come from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fort Frye Local School District

•  The purchase of remote learning technology for students, specifically Chromebooks.

“Fort Frye Local Schools is using the donated funds to purchase mobile technology that students can use both at school and home during this ongoing pandemic,” said Stephanie Starcher, Superintendent of Fort Frye Local School District. “Many of our families do not have computers at home, and this grant allows us to provide students with Chromebooks to connect with our teachers live and complete learning from home.” 

Warren Local School District

• The purchase of outdoor equipment to create an outdoor learning space for both the High School and Middle School to utilize.

“Having an opportunity to be creative and expand educational opportunities for our students is always exciting,” said Kyle Newton, Superintendent of Warren Local School District. “This grant allowed us to think outside the box and provide a creative and multifaceted opportunity to get a great return on investment. Not only will our students be able to take full educational advantage of the use of this new space, but our community will also have the same opportunity when they are using the space.”

Belpre City School District

•  The purchase of airflow systems and cleaning products.

“We are beyond grateful to our community for pulling together to fundraise these important funds,” said Jeffrey Greenley, Superintendent of Belpre City Schools. “We have had a significant number of unforeseen costs this year as we have worked hard to continue in-person education for our students.  This contribution will go a long way in our fight against the virus and will enable us to keep our students where they are the safest: our school buildings.”

The $60K For 6 campaign launched after Marietta Community Foundation put up $30,000, of their own funds, as a matching grant. In just six weeks the Foundation met its goal through the generosity of 60 donations, including 10 donations from local businesses: Hall Financial Advisors Giving Foundation, Settlers Bank, Frye Dental Group, Morrison, Inc., Southeastern Ohio Port Authority, Schwendeman Agency, WMOA, Over the Moon Pub & Pizza, Teri Ann’s, and Mallett Rentals.

Although the timeline is up to the individual school districts, the Foundation is still waiting to receive proposals from Frontier Local School District and Waterford Local School District.

“We wish each school district the best of luck and we look forward to seeing the remaining two proposals in the future,” said Frye.

Marietta Community Foundation works to improve Washington County through grants and initiatives. If you would like to support the efforts of Marietta Community Foundation, please visit www.mcfohio.org/donate. For those who wish to speak to an individual, please contact Heather Allender at 740-373-3286 or heather@mcfohio.org.