TPS honors dedicated volunteers

12/18/2008

Seven people and four groups have been given Toledo Public Schools' Silver Slate awards for outstanding volunteer service to the district.

The Toledo Board of Education earlier this week showed their appreciation by recognizing the volunteers.

The annual award program began in 1983.

The 2008 honorees are:

•Chuck Carter, who volunteered at Pickett Academy for the last 15 years, helping out everyday wherever he is needed, and still works a full-time job.

•Craig Ide, who volunteers at Riverside Elementary nearly every day helping with the transition to the swing space - the old Leverette - he's at the school for dismissal and works to make sure students, parents, and teachers leave the building safely.

•Debby McCrum, who volunteers at Longfellow Elementary with her primary goal to do whatever she can to support students and the school. She is active in the Parent-Teacher Organization by helping organize fund-raisers and continues to volunteer at Longfellow even though her youngest child is in middle school.

•Michelle January, who has volunteered at McKinley Elementary for three years and continues to do so even though her children are in middle school. She volunteers in the school library and mentors first-grade students through the Ohio Reads program.

•Jason Jones, a proud graduate of Bowsher High School who continues to volunteer at his alma mater working in the school's state-of-the-art theater. He has volunteered more than 400 hours to help with the setup of the new theater's sound and lighting systems. He also has trained select faculty on how to operate the system.

•Oscar Bunch, who has supported public education and Toledo Public Schools for more than 40 years. He serves on the governing board for Toledo Technology Academy and was one of the initial supporters of the district's career tech programing.

•Bob Holland, who is a 1972 graduate of Waite High School and has remained active in a variety of aspects surrounding the school since. Most recently, he spearheaded the renovation efforts for the school's baseball diamonds and has raised more than $25,000 in financial contributions and donation of services for the effort.

•Employees from the Dana Corp., who volunteer more than 1,000 hours each year to help students at the Toledo Technology Academy prepare for the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics competition.

They mentor the students and are committed to helping them build their futures in the field of engineering.

•The Docent Program at the Toledo Museum of Art, which has developed a yearlong project that focuses on the concept of neighborhoods and the people who live in and around the school.

The project introduced grade-level content that includes hands-on activities for students visiting the museum. Their efforts helped students from Ella P. Stewart Academy visit the museum and take part in the project.

•The Downtown Kiwanis Club of Toledo, which partners with Fulton Elementary to monitor incentive programs for students throughout the year, including the Terrific Kids program through which four students each month are rewarded for their academic progress and good citizenship. The students are the guests of the Kiwanis at a luncheon held at the Toledo Club.

The club also hosts an annual holiday event for students and has purchased equipment for the school's playground.

•Libbey High School's class of 1958, which held its 50th anniversary and among other things celebrated with a dinner dance where the class announced it would donate $4,000 to its alma mater's scholarship fund.