A technology focused foundation

[Dave Allen Barker Jr]

My first thought is that we should not have a technology focused foundation.

I'm guessing a foundation is, at its foundation 😉, a legal entity to simply give Sagamore parents more flexibility (than the PTA) in how we raise and spend money (someone should start a new thread about that); defining a foundation's purpose more specifically than that seems to only limit its usefulness.

Would you tell us more about how a targeted foundation, "will lead to better fundraising and partnering opportunities and outcomes than a general foundation"?

On 01/28/2015 11:37 AM, John R. Lenz wrote:

I would love to be involved and I have some ideas about it. 

To summarize: I think it would be best to focus on a particular area because I believe it will lead to better fundraising and partnering opportunities and outcomes than a general foundation.

Three years ago I thought technology would be a good focus and put together a presentation for PTA. 

One of my largest regrets is that I didn't press on the gas and get it done.

Here's link to a 10 mb PDF of my presentation and ideas if anyone is interested:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1GbSkYZtPSyVmNocXFrRXdoVG8/view?usp=sharing

Thank you Lara.

-John

On Jan 28, 2015, at 11:14 AM, Lara Baldwin <lara.b...@gmail.com> wrote:

Disclaimer:
I have sent you all this email because I think you might be a lawyer and understand this stuff!? 
Or maybe you have a connection to lawyery-type people?
Or maybe you're good at writing grants?
Or I was thinking you might be interested in getting a foundation started for Sagamore?
Or you don't even have kids here yet, but you might want to get involved already? Right? Why not?!! :)

Yes, I said it. A FOUNDATION for Sagamore Hills Elementary! It's time!

Peter Steckel, who has two children at Sagamore, is a lawyer and has graciously offered to get things started, legally that is. He has foundation templates and can get things going! So let's get this thing going! I've heard people talk about this ever since I've been at Sagamore. I heard there was a committee a few years ago and things were in motion, but it fizzled out because people get busy. LET'S TRY AGAIN! THIS IS OUR MOMENT!

As far as I know, Sagamore is one of the only schools in our area without a foundation. We could use if for many things. For example:

1 - more ipads! more laptops!
2 - better playground, even handicap accessible!
3 - painting the inside and outside of the school!
4 - update the bathrooms!
5 - supplement STEM committee teachers' salaries! (they work after school for free, and they're doing such an amazing job!)
6 - apply and get grants for wonderful things that our school and students and teachers need!

On the committee we would have a person or two who is dedicated to searching for and bringing in grants for our school!

We could have a during-the-school-day FUN RUN (get pledges per lap) this Spring or next Fall as a Foundation Fundraiser to get (from what I hear these fun runs are quite successful) $20,000-$40,000 to help get things going with our foundation funds.

These are just ideas off the top of my head. I don't really know much about foundations or how to get them started, but I do know that my younger daughter at Coralwood is benefiting everyday from things that the Coralwood foundation made possible for its students and teachers. Sagamore could use a foundation too. I think a lot of parents, grandparents, neighborhood folk, etc would be very eager to contribute to Sagamore's Foundation.

Please email me back if you're interested in being on the Foundation Committee or even helping out in any capacity. For now, we would need a committee of five or six (I'm guessing on that number!) to get things going. We will also need someone to head the foundation, so if you're interested in that, please let me know!

Thank you :)
Lara

[John R. Lenz]

Imagine this scenario:

Your daughter walks up to you and asks you for $2.

Your immediate response (most likely; besides no) is "Why and what for?"

So now imagine the fundraising chair of the foundation goes to Company X and asks them for funding. Company X will ask:

"Why and what for?"

So we need to be able to answer that question succinctly; regardless of the focus of the foundation.

But if it's a general foundation with a slush fund that helps keep the school clean, gets new playground equipment, buys ipads, procures soccer balls, funds CE for teachers, funds a teacher for 2nd language learning, etc. then the pitch to Company X would be more difficult and less successful than if there was a focus on a particular area that we could agree on and then pitch.

Here's another scenario: Let's say we want the foundation to fund Spanish classes after school. I would bet that the Mexican Consulate here in Atlanta would help us with the funding/teachers/connections etc. But they probably, rightly wouldn't care about ipads for junior and his sister.

Of course there could be a general foundation instead of a focused one, and there could be new initiatives that the rotating board members decide to take on and fundraise for each year (each year's project would probably be different.)

But my opinion--which if paired with $3 could get you a cup of coffee at starbucks--is if we want sustained success, (and an easier pitch/sell for year-after-year funding) we should focus the mission of the foundation instead of making it just another slush fund for random projects and initiatives.

I might be in the minority and that's fine.

I just know how difficult it can be to persuade people/companies into stroking checks.

And without the checks, the foundation goes nowhere.

-John