2020 Annual Report Table of Contents
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PAST PRESENT FUTURE EUCLID PUBLIC SCHOOLS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT TABLE OF CONTENTS Making Progress on our Strategic Plan 4 Dear Alumni, EPSAA 2019-2020 Events Timeline 6 When we initially added this Annual Report to our plans for 2020, we couldn’t have Sports Hall of Fame 8 imagined the challenges that have arisen this year. The COVID-19 pandemic has dis- Distinguished Achievement Hall of Fame 12 rupted so much, for so many, and continues Membership Update 17 to impact our lives daily. However, the last- ing values of resiliency and community that Superintendent’s Message 18 exemplify the Euclid Schools are at work too. What we learned during our time in the Euclid Schools Foundation Message 19 Euclid schools—and the friendships we de- veloped—have helped many of us navigate Alumni News 20 these days. Homecoming through the Years 23 We are proud to present this Annual Report to you, and to share all the progress we have made since the last alumni newsletter arrived in the mail. The last few years have brought significant change for the Euclid Public Schools Alum- ni Association (EPSAA). We are incredibly grateful for the feedback we have received from all of our Alumni, as we have worked to bring vibrancy and engagement back to our Association. Our organization was born and has grown because of the dedication and Panther pride of our two greatest advo- cates, Joe Mayer (Shore ‘47) and Chuck Hill (Shore ‘47). Their work planted the seeds for the direction we are heading today—con- necting Euclid Schools Alumni and Associ- ation members to resources, information, benefits, and events that engage them with the past, present, and future of the Euclid City Schools. Greg Fondran (’83) picked up the ball as Alumni Director in 2017. Greg spent the last few years making sure the day-to-day of EPSAA continues, without Chuck and Joe, and put together a team of Trustees to bring the organization into the future. 2 We are excited to announce that Michelle Connavino (’04) is taking over as Alumni Go Admirals, Go Lions, and Go Panthers! Director, effective September 1, 2020. She Sincerely, has been a member of the Advisory Board The EPSAA Trustees since 2017, running both the Sports and Distinguished Achievement Hall of Fame Beth Steele Radisek ‘83, President events and providing critical support to the Jessica Oslund Walters, ‘04, Vice President Trustees since she joined the team. & Treasurer Patrick K. Delaney, ‘83 Kenny Godnavec, ‘83 As you will see throughout this report, we Patrick McLaughlin, ‘86 have a great deal to share with you! We Greg Fondran, ‘83, Outgoing Director have moved much of our communication Michelle Connavino, ‘04, Incoming Director online, including a website, a quarterly e-mail newsletter, and an active Facebook Ex-Officio: page. Construction is underway for the Christopher Papouras, ‘86, Euclid Schools new Alumni Office at Euclid High School Superintendent where we will be able to display some of our vast memorabilia collection and host Advisory Board Members: Ken Ferlito, ‘81 future Alumni events. We will also be retir- James Tusoch, ‘04 ing the old Alumni Database and moving to a cloud-based system that will better meet our needs. This Fall, we hope to arrange a walk- through of both the High School and Central Mid- dle School, depending on whether or not we can do so safely, so that Alumni can walk the halls of both buildings before demoli- tion is completed. We are always looking for project volunteers, new members, and Trustees, so if you are interested please visit our website or email [email protected]. We are grateful for the ongoing engagement of so many of our alumni, and wish you health and happi- ness in the coming year. 3 MAKING PROGRESS ON OUR STRATEGIC PLAN Nearly two years into our Strategic Plan imple- Vision Statement: EPSAA will be a leader mentation, we’ve made significant progress, but among public school alumni associations in still have a lot of work ahead of us. To recap our the greater Cleveland area by engaging all Eu- process, between June and September, 2018, clid Schools alumni and connecting them in a EPSAA released a survey and held a series of meaningful way to the Euclid City Schools, its public focus groups to acquire recommendations current students, and the Euclid community. from our core constituents to form the basis of our strategic plan. Through this process, we had We also identified the core functions of the 126 interactions with alumni. The recommenda- Alumni Association and organized our strategic tions that emerged from this process are includ- plan around those core functions. ed in the plan. Core Functions: The Euclid Public Schools We created new Mission and Vision statements Alumni Association’s core purpose is Member based on the feedback we received. and Alumni Relations. This purpose is fulfilled through three core functions: Mission Statement: The Euclid Public Schools • Fundraising and Events; Alumni Association connects Euclid Schools • Communication; and alumni and association members to resourc- • Memorabilia. es, information, benefits, and events that en- gage them with the past, present, and future In addition to these public-facing functions, of the Euclid City Schools. there are several internal, Administrative and In our survey of alumni, we asked, “What word or words do you associate with your time in Euclid Public Schools?” This graphic, called a word cloud, shows the responses. The larger the size of the word, the more frequently it was mentioned. 4 Operational functions that are essential to the of our planned events until at least 2021. implementation of our mission and vision. However, both EPSAA and the school district are committed to giving alumni the opportunity to Once we finalized the recommendations in the see the high school building before parts of it plan, we created an ambitious implementation are demolished to make way for the new middle timeline. While our initial timeline was set back and high school campus. somewhat by the coronavirus pandemic, we have made significant progress. As EPSAA continues to look toward its future, members of the executive team and committees Just this year, we began the process of ensuring will be identifying goals and strategies that will our extensive memorabilia collection was stored set us up to fulfill our mission and vision. But we safely and worked with the school district to need your help! If you are interested in getting begin identifying a long-term strategy for more involved, send us an email at memorabilia collection, storage, and display. [email protected]. In February we held a meeting with several alumni interested in getting more involved on committees and formed our first three committees: Memorabilia, Member and Alumni Relations, and Communication. These committees identified initial action steps, some of which have already been implemented, including adding the ability to purchase memberships on our website and growing our e-mail list. The biggest impact of the pandemic was on Our January Memorabilia sorting event. Left to right, Mary (Hill) our plan to hold quarterly events. At this time, Czyzycki (Shore ‘49), Roy Pignatiello (‘72), Connie (Krnell) Contenza we likely will not be able to hold the majority (‘62), Jessica (Oslund) Walters (‘04), Michelle Connavino (‘04), and Cathleen (Zalewski) McLaughlin (‘05) COMPLETE IN PROCESS • Update bylaws • Identify alumni to serve as trustees and in • Create annual budget other leadership roles • Form Membership & Alumni Engagement, • Form Community & School Relations and Communication, and Memorabilia Event Committees Committees • Finalize membership costs and benefits • Regularly attend class reunions and • Set goals for membership growth community and school events • Create a “go kit” for events • Host quarterly events • Create communication plan • Maintain ongoing communication with the • Determine collection, storage, and display school district strategy for memorabilia • Create dedicated alumni website • Send one final hard copy newsletter To view the full strategic plan and timeline, visit • Shift to quarterly e-newsletter EuclidAlumni.org/Strategic-Plan 5 WE’VE BEEN BUSY! Throughout 2019 and the first half of 2020, EPSAA has been hard at work implementing our strategic plan and fulfilling our mission. Here are a few highlights of our work over the past year and a half. NOVEMBER 2019 Sports Hall of Fame MARCH 2019 Induction Ceremony Hosted Annual Meeting FEBRUARY 2019 MAY 2019 Sent Final Hard Copy Began Alumni Directory Newsletter Update JANUARY 2019 Launched New Website APRIL 2019 Charity Tuesdays and Social at Euclid’s Beach Club Bistro JUNE 2019 Participated in East 200th Street Stroll Shore High School Class of 1944 75th Reunion APRIL 2019 Distinguished Achievement Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony 6 MAY 2020 NOVEMBER 2019 Worked with School District to Sports Hall of Fame Purchase Yard Signs for Induction Ceremony Graduating Seniors FEBRUARY 2020 DECEMBER 2019 Hosted First Published First E-Newsletter Committee Meeting JULY 2020 Published E-Newsletter RECURRING EVENTS Every Month Trustee Meetings JUNE 2019 Participated in East 200th Street Stroll JANUARY 2020 Hosted Memorabilia Sorting Event Every Wednesday Alumni Lunch at Euclid Culinary Bistro As Requested Class Reunions & School Tours 7 Left to right: Desmond Motley, Terenz Parker, Robert Yoe, Tamika Harbour, Tom Halbedel, John Telich, Brandon Biggom, Devon Jennings 33RD ANNUAL EUCLID HIGH SCHOOLS SPORTS HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY Seven Euclid alumni expressed their Panther pride season, his team was 11-1. Brandon was part of three on November 21st as they were honored for their GCC Championship Teams and three playoff teams. accomplishments and inducted into the Euclid High He finished his career with sixteen interceptions and Schools Sports Hall of Fame. was a ferocious hitter from his cornerback position. Organized by the Euclid Public Schools Alumni As- Brandon also excelled in track and field where he was sociation, the annual event at Tizzano’s Party Center again a four-year starter and captain during his se- recognizes the outstanding achievements of former nior year.