Mission Statement:  The mission of the Polk Education Foundation is to establish a responsive working relationship between the community and the public school system and to link community resources to the educational process.

Board of Directors: 

President - Ray Graber, Bright House Networks

Vice President - Richard  Stephens, Holland and Knight

Secretary/ Treasurer - David Ullman, Bunting, Tripp & Ingley, CPA

Board Members

Carol J. Barnett, Publix Super Markets Charities, Inc.

Hunt Berryman, Retired, Community Activist

Ebbie Sue Blackmer, W.S. Badcock Corp

Sylvia Blackmon-Roberts, Blackmon-Roberts Group

Tracy Bryant, Rinker Materials

Paula Dockery, President, Cardinal Insurance, and State Senator                     

Al Dorsett, Community Activist

Mimi Hardman, Community Activist

Hollis Hooks, Smith Barney

Kevin Jones,  MIDFLORIDA Federal Credit Union

Kathryn Koch-O'Malley, Lanier Upshaw

Carey MacConnell, MOSAIC

Gail McKinzie , Superintendent of Polk County Schools

Debbie Misch, Community Activist

Jerry Miller, Progress Energy

Steve Petrie, School Principal

Cindy Price, TECO

Brenda Reddout, Polk County School Board Member

Bill Reid, Verizon

Michael Sales, Pepsi Bottling Group

Hazel Sellars, Polk County School Board Member

Sherrin Smyers, Community Activist

John Stargel, Circuit Judge

Mary Ruth Wilson, Community Activist

Rick Wilson, State Farm Insurance

Highlights of Foundation Programs:

The Polk Education Foundation sponsors programs that can be classified into the following five areas:

Scholarships

Take Stock in Children – a tuition scholarship program designed to select high achieving 9^th grade students who due to financial circumstances might never have the opportunity to attend college. In 2007, 24 students graduated from this program in Polk County earning over $158,160 worh of TSIC scholarships.

Graduating Seniors - The Foundation has awarded over 3,800 scholarships to graduating seniors from Polk County since 1988.  The awards range from $250 to $8,000.  In 2007, 344 scholarships were awarded giving $495,197 to the students of Polk County to further their education!

Chair Scholars Scholarship - provides 2+2 scholarships (a community college and university tuition scholarship) for academically achieving yet physically challenged students in Polk County.  A private donor funds this entire program and we currently have 28 students of various grades who have a scholarship waiting for them when they graduate.

Teacher / School Grant Programs

Donor Sponsored Grant Programs – grants such as the GTE / IMC-Agrico Technology Matching Grants, GTE Math and Science Mini-grants, GTE-Literacy Grants-K-8 Literacy Programs, Verizon Literacy Grant, Progress Energy Technology Grants, Progress Energy Math and Science Grants, and GEICO FCAT Remediation Grants have been sponsored in the past. 

Teacher to Teacher Connection Grants – The purpose of this program is to recognize and reward teachers for their innovative teaching practices, then to help replicate those practices in other classrooms around the county by providing a venue for teachers to network.

School to School Connection - This program looks for innovative programs used shcool wide, and was started in the 2006-07 school year as an expanson of the Teacher to Teacher Connection.

Improving Literacy

AmeriCorps Polk Reads - funded through federal grant funds and money from the PEF, this program allows us to administer in school tutoring programs through out Polk County. Each year students who have participated in this program have gained at least one reading level.

Employee Recognition Programs

·         Teacher of the Year/Non-Instructional Employee of the Year

·         Tuition Reimbursement Program

·         Employee grants

·         Volunteer of the Year

Student Recognition Programs

·         Spelling Bee

·         Poetry Contest

·         Polk County Regional Science Fair

·         Imperial Symphony Orchestra

·         Minority Achievement Banquet

·         Project Hearth for Homeless Elementary Students

·         Project Fill-A-Bucket

·         School Physicals

·         Hall of Fame Banquet

·         Gray Robinson Superintendent Scholars

·         Academic Competitions

Updated: 8/23/07