REPORT TO THE COMMUNITY Connecting School and Community IPEI is a community-based organization that supports the teachers and students of the Ithaca City School District. IPEI works to connect our schools with the human and financial resources of our community and to enhance the educational experience and success of every student. “Ten years ago, IPEI awarded its first teacher grant. Since then, we have awarded over $300,000 in grants to Ithaca teachers and schools for creative projects that include community resources. As an all-volunteer organization, we encourage and depend on collaboration and support from all of you. THANK YOU TO THE TRIAD FOUNDATION FOR MAKING TPHleISaRsEPeOjRoTinP—OuSTSseIBrrLayEn.Bdykrenesp, tIPhEeI mProesmideenntum growing!” CO N T E N T S Connecting School and Community . 1 Teacher Grants . 2 Red and Gold Opportunities Grants . 4 Kids Discover the Trail! Collaboration . 5 Affiliates . 7 Initiatives . 9 Community Engagement . 11 Giving Opportunities. 12 Donors . 15 Financial Report . 22 P H OTO C R E D I T S Photos:Tompkins County Public Library, cover, p. 1, 5; Erin Marteal, cover, p. 2, 10 15, 20; Eric Stewart, inside cover; Erica Hitzhuzen, p. 3, 16, 18; Terry Byrnes, p. 5; Katharine Dougherty, p. 8; Jackie Richardson, p. 16, 24. Photo of Ian Alberta, p. 13, courtesy his family; photo of Cassandra Mazur, p. 13, courtesy her family IPEI Celebrates a Decade of Success IPEI began in 1996 as an effort to strengthen our public schools through community involvement and collabora- tion. Now, ten years later, this all-volunteer grassroots initiativeChaos bnecnomeeca tsiginnifigcantSandcenhduorionglpart of the educational and community landscape in Ithaca. What is IPEaI?nd Community IPEI is a community-based, all-volunteer, nonprofit organ- ization that supports the teachers and students of the Ithaca City School District, connecting the schools with the human and financial resources of our community, thereby enhancing the educational experience and success of every student. What have we accomplished in 10 years? • Enhanced classroom curriculum through our Teacher Grants Program and the Kids Discover the Trail! collaboration • Increased community commitment to Ithaca public schools • Encouraged and facilitated the growth of community groups that support students and teachers • Provided opportunities for collaboration among groups and individuals working to support our schools • Established Donor Endowments that provide awards each year to students and teachers • Worked with schools to assist students as they transi- tion from elementary to middle school Where are we going in the next decade? IPEI is proud of its accomplishments. Our goals include expanding and improving our cur- rent programs, as well as considering new initiatives that fit our mission to serve as a link and catalyst for strengthening our schools and our community. For ten years, IPEI has been working together with other community groups to enhance public education by con- necting our teachers and students to the diverse array of resources already available in our own backyard. Collabo- ration starts with communication: listening to each other’s ideas, searching for common ground and then together devising solutions that achieve the objectives of the group. Only thPen rdooyogurgao tmo wosrk on programs and activities. IPEI has been a catalyst for several collabora- tions over the past ten years and welcomes additional opportunities to collaborate. Teacher Grants Central to IPEI’s core values and beliefs is the importance to the individual student of the classroom or other in- school experience.We also believe strongly in the value of community involvement with the schools. In keeping with these beliefs we have developed a variety of programs that provide small-to-medium-sized grants to teachers and others to enrich the educational experience for students. Most of these grants require the applicant to have a community partner involved in the project or activity. “Taking the play from the ‘page to the stage’ engaged students in the text and gave them a foundation for reading and appreciating Shakespeare in the future. They realized that the language of Shakespeare is not beyond their understanding and not so intimidating.” —Teacher, Boynton Middle School In December 2005, 18 teachers in ICSD were awarded a total of $16,000, including $5,000 from the Charles E. Treman Jr. Teacher Grant endowment. IPEI encourages 2 innovative projects that bring community resources into the classroom. The 2006 grants will be awarded in January 2007. Poetry Slamming with Lynne Saulsbury & Michelle Berry (Ithaca High) Exploring Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night with the Hangar Theatre (Boynton Middle) Making Ceramic Drums with Toko Imports (Ithaca High) The Chemistry of Art and Materials with Johnson Art Museum and Cornell Center for Materials Research (Ithaca High) The Living Classroom with the Cornell Plantations (Fall Creek Elementary) The Floating Classroom with Cayuga Nature Center (Boynton Middle) Readin’, Ritin’,‘Rithmetic, and Baseball with Ithaca College and Cornell Baseball (Cayuga Heights Elementary and BJM Elementary) Navajo Community Cultural Exchange with Cayuga Nature Center and Cornell American Indian Program (Dewitt Middle) “What a wonderful program—linking community members with teachers and giving teachers a vehicle to enhance their curricula.” —Teacher, Cayuga Heights Elementary Face to Face with Johnson Art Museum (Northeast) Picturing Young Authors: Fostering Literacy Through Art with Ithaca Downtown Partnership (BJM Elementary) ¡Sí, Yo hablo Español! with Viviana Sitz Servetto (Cayuga Heights Elementary) Cultural Crossings/Expanding Communities with Akwesasne Freedom School and SHARE Farm (Lehman Alternative) 3 Reflections of our Community: A Tile Installation with Sheila Kyle (Ithaca High) Blue Jays, Cardinals and Crows, Oh My! with the Labora- tory of Ornithology, Cornell (Cayuga Heights Elementary) Windows: A Collaborative Partnership between IHS Art and the Ink Shop (Ithaca High) Outreach Leadership Exchange with CRESP and the Language Center (Lehman Alternative) Harlem Renaissance Interdisciplinary Project (Dewitt Middle) From Stage to the Page with Regi Carpenter (BJM Elementary) Red and Gold Opportunities Grants This program offers one time awards up to $500 at the request of any district staff member, student, or commu- nity member. Grants assist with projects that strengthen and enrich the schools and fall outside the criteria of our Teacher Grants. Grants awarded in 2005–2006 totaled nearly $3,500 and were as follows • ACE Enhancing College Awareness Program, Ithaca High School • After-school Language Enrichment Program, Caroline Elementary • Fifth Grade Fine Arts Experience, Caroline Elementary • Fifth Grade visit to Old Fort Niagara, BJM Elementary • Glass Making Project, Lehman Alternative • Multicultural Staff Dinner, ICSD, Village at Ithaca • Science Kits, Fall Creek Elementary “My daughter learned an appreciation of a new culture, learned some basic grammar, a positive first experience with a foreign language. The teacher was very charming and a lot of singing and fun activities took place.” —Parent, Caroline Elementary 4 Kids Discover the Trail! Collaboration By far the most ambitious of IPEI’s collaborations, is a joint effort by the eight Discovery Trail partners and our eight elementary schools to introduce 3500 students and their teachers to the wonders of bird migration, animal art, dinosaurs, magnetism, joy of books, wildflowers, and much more through the world-class experts and collections we have here in Ithaca. Discovery Trail part- ners include Cayuga Nature Center, Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Cornell Plantations, History Center in Tompkins County, Johnson Museum of Art, Museum of the Earth at PRI, Sciencenter, and the Tompkins County Public Library. Last year the Kids Discover the Trail! collaboration contin- ued to grow and reached 60% of our elementary teach- ers and students in the Pre-K through 5th grades. Now in its third year, we hope to expand to include up to 75% of all such students and teachers. “These institutions are jewels, but they only achieve their full worth when all members of the community are able to take advantage of their assets. By bringing hundreds and someday thou- sands of kids to these sites—at no cost to the students or area taxpayers—IPEI has enhanced its own already significant value to Ithaca and Tompkins County.” —Ithaca Journal Editorial 5 “I think the exposure to the Discovery Trail sites is a wonderful experience for all children and having it as a common experience will help to build a feeling of community across the school district.” —Teacher, Belle Sherman Elementary Kids Discover the Trail! aims to do the following • Enrich school curriculum • Provide equal access to all Discovery Trail sites for all district Pre-K through 5th grade students • Promote understanding, lessen tensions by providing opportunities for positive social interaction • Promote community awareness of the resources of the Discovery Trail “I love that this program allows all of our children to experience the rich resources of our community.” —Teacher, Caroline Elementary Major funding for this Kids Discover the Trail! has been provided through the generosity of local institutions, foundations, businesses and individuals. The overall Program Sponsor in 2005 and 2006 was Tompkins Trust Company and will be Tompkins County Foundation in 2007 and 2008. 6 Fine Arts Booster Group The Ithaca Community Fine Arts