For the better part of the last three years, the morale of locale educators has fallen off the scales as they witness massive funding cuts to their schools by the Kansas Legislature.
“Every time you had a faculty meeting and talk about the budget, it was depressing. You felt like you were never going to be able to operate your classroom with some of the tools that you want for your students,” said Bryna Boldra, Iola Middle School math teacher.
That helpless feeling has subsided a bit for some Iola teachers.
Since taking the helm as top administrator for USD 257 in July, Superintendent Brian Pekarek has been showing teachers, principals and department heads there’s more than one way to turn a trick. Twice a month area professionals attend seminars where they learn about nontraditional funding obtained primarily through grants.
“It’s nice to have some other means to explore to get some of those things,” Boldra said of the grant writing seminars. Boldra was awarded two grants — one from Walmart, one from Emprise Bank — totaling $2,500 to purchase an electronic, user-interactive SMART board.
Having seen $2.2 million in budget cuts during the last three years and a 25 percent cut in teachers’ classroom-supply budget, “every little bit helps,” Pekarek said. And a lot of “little bits” can add up to a large sum, he said.
At the first grant writing seminar in August, the USD 257 staff collectively set a goal of obtaining $100,000 in small grants. So far, with the help of a 15 percent match of 20 grants from the USD 257 Endowment Association, Iola educators have brought in more than $35,000 in new, one-time money.
“Remember, it takes some time to write those grants and put everything together and most of those grants will be awarded in the spring. Considering that we have 60 percent of the school year left, I’m very pleased with the $35,000 we’ve been able to secure up to this point,” Pekarek said.
The district is pursuing larger grants that could result in $1.5 million for USD 257 schools — $600,000 for SAFE BASE operations, $500,000 for early childhood development, $200,000 for at-risk youth education and $200,000 to retrofit all district school buses.
But the emphasis on seeking nontraditional funding is more about changing the culture of the district than it is about money, Pekarek said.
“It’s a mind change more than just having more money. It’s about seeing the world differently and being fiscally conservative with what we have but then seeing the world in abundance rather than in scarcity,” he said.
Boldra agreed and said before the seminars, most Iola teachers didn’t have a clue about grant opportunities.
“I knew grants were out there but I just had no idea how to pursue,” she said. “Individually it was kind of overwhelming, so it’s nice to be aware.”
Pekarek said one of his goals is to create an academic environment where staff members are confident in their ability to seek funds coming from places other than the government.
“Teachers are not taught these skills. It’s not taught in the college classes about education,” he said. “But I think teachers should know about finance and how it works and how little steps allow you to be proactive.”
With so much talk about money, Pekarek said some might think the district isn’t focusing enough on the students. That couldn’t be farther from the truth, he said.
“It’s for the kids. That’s why we got into education and that’s why we’re writing grants,” Pekarek said. “If we focus on the kids, then grant writing will work. That’s the motivation.”
Finding other ways to funding
