Here's the deal ... there is no middle school in the Bay Area, maybe even the world, that is doing more exciting work than Hillview Middle School. I get calls weekly from educational leaders throughout the county and state asking to come visit and learn more about our exciting journey. The enthusiasm is electric. Whether it's the 1:1 iPad program, the beautiful facility, our amazing elective and after-school programs, our innovative work in Teaching and Learning or our unique mini-course program -- other schools want to do what we are doing!
However, we can't do what we do without your support of our amazing educational foundation. The Menlo Park-Atherton Education Foundation's (MPAEF) Annual Parent Campaign closes tomorrow, Friday, November 22! Participation from Hillview families is currently the lowest in the district ... I want to turn that around! With your help, we can have the highest participation rate in the district at just over 62 percent.
It doesn't matter how much you give; what matters is that we all have "skin in the game." The "ask" is $1,500 per student in the district. Some can give more, some can give less. We can all give!
If you don't already know, the MPAEF is the education foundation that raises funds for our schools, which helps pay for: Classroom Teachers; Elective Teachers, including for Music, Art and Drama programs; our Librarian; as well as counselors, technology and teacher-initiated grants. Your support of the MPAEF is what makes these teachers and programs possible at Hillview!
The MPAEF's goal is 80 percent participation from our District parents and it still needs 243 families to pledge or donate by Friday to reach this goal.
I hope that all Hillview families who have not yet made a gift to the MPAEF will consider doing so at any level. Every gift brings us one family closer to the 80 percent goal and shows our resolve as a community to create extraordinary public schools for all children in our community. Join my family and me, and please participate.
You can pledge or donate online at www.mpaef.org. You may mail donations to the MPAEF office at PO Box 584, Menlo Park, CA 94026 or drop off your donation in the Hillview office before Friday.
Please know that a pledge can be fulfilled up through May 1, 2014, which is a great way to make your commitment, be counted, and pay at a time convenient for you.
Thank you to our many families who have already done their part!
