Dear Live Oak Families:
We hope everyone is having a wonderful summer! On behalf of the Live Oak Education Fund, I want to say thank you to all of you who supported Live Oak Education Fund during the 2018-19 school year.
Through your donations, we were able to invest over $409,000 into our school this last year. Your donations to Ed Fund at registration and participation in our Poker Night, Auction/ Gala, and Readathon fundraisers made last year a great success for our school!
Over the past year, Live Oak Education Fund has seen challenging times with declining donations, much of which is related to declining enrollment.
At our town hall meeting in February, we highlighted how declining enrollment and donations affects Live Oak.
In the last 4 years, Live Oak has gone from 1200 students to 700 students. Unfortunately the correlation between number of students and program support needs is not direct. Fewer students has meant fewer people donating, but many of the program needs, such as art, music and library, remain the same.
As a result of the decline in donations, the Live Oak Education Fund (which directly represents you and is made up of elected Live Oak parents), in close coordination with the school administration, has had to make some very difficult decisions including reduction of 2 Para’s, and the end of Ed Fund support of field trips for the upcoming year.*
On a bright note, after our town hall meeting in February, many of you stepped up and came out in support during Gala and made it a huge success! Through the success of Gala we were able to sustain funding for a number of our remaining programs!
This past year, your Ed Fund donations paid for 9 para-educators, effectively reducing class-size ratios. Funding of paras is Live Oak Ed Fund’s biggest expense, but also has the greatest impact in the classroom and on YOUR child. Additionally, Live Oak’s innovative STEAM curriculum, technology, high-impact learning experiences, and cutting-edge programs are ONLY possible because of your generous support to the Ed Fund.
We hope the Live Oak community will step up its participation during registration to ensure no additional cuts occur to the important programs upon which your students rely.
What can you do?
To continue all the important programs LOEF has historically supported,
we need EVERYONE’s support, so please make a donation!
Did you know we continue to have the lowest elementary "ask" in the Dougherty Valley? This year we are asking each family to donate
$595 per student
at fall registration. That breaks down to less than a cup of coffee a day! We understand a single payment may be an issue so we have extended the payment options this year too.
This requested donation amount reflects the true cost of maintaining the level of curriculum and programming that have made students so successful at Live Oak and that our families have come to expect.
The money raised at registration in August will be used to fulfill the immediate student needs this school year. This will allow for a more enriching and innovative learning experience for our children.
In addition to the donations we receive at registration, you can also double your Ed Fund donation through employer company match.
Check to see if your company has a corporate match program or email us and we can help you find out.
Please make sure that during registration, both parents’ and employer’s information are listed in the system. This will allow us to send you the automated information for steps required with each employer.
Our goal for 2019-20 year is to raise $387,000 to cover otherwise unfunded expenses:
Salaries of staff not paid by SRVUSD (
$250,000)
Without your support, your students will have reduced or no access to these services as the district provides limited budget for these staff:
- 7 Classroom Para-Educators
- Music Teacher
- Art Teacher
- Librarian
- Teacher Special Assignment
Technology and Classroom Supplies ($125,000)
P
urchase, maintenance and replacement of technology used in the classrooms and classroom supplies:
- All School/Classroom Supplies
- iPads/Chromebooks
- Art Supplies
- Science equipment and lab supplies
- Classroom Leveled Libraries
- Technology upgrade
Operating Expenses($12,000)
- Software
- Licensing fees
- Program support
- Marketing
- Credit Card Processing
Your support of Ed Fund is what helps Live Oak consistently remain a high-performing school. Live Oak Ed Fund is a non-profit organization, made up of elected parents and staff whose sole support is to ensure that your donation dollars go to ensure the best possible curriculum, staffing and support is provided for YOUR child. Your donation may be tax-deductible (consult with your financial advisor) and goes directly to the classroom and supports our mission of maintaining and improving the quality of education at Live Oak. For more information about the Live Oak Ed Fund please visit our
website
.
Thank you for your continued support of Ed Fund and have a fantastic 2019/20 school year!
Art Mimnaugh
Live Oak Ed Fund President 2019-2020
*In the past several years, LOEF has tried to make it easier for the school to make plans for field trips and make it easier for parents in writing one check, by funding field trips. Field trips are not funded by the district and LOEF no longer receives enough donations to support them. This means some field trips may be eliminated since funding isn't guaranteed, and will be subject to event-by-event support through donations by parents in the classroom. Please support your child's classroom field trips when requested by your teacher in the coming year. If all parents don't step up when requested, those field trips may be canceled if they cannot be paid for.