Charity Spotlight sponsored by coastal states raymond james - craig gilmour
Foundation for EDUCATIONAL
Excellence
Granting Life-Changing Experiences for Beaufort County Students By Laurie McCall
“Some kids don’t see the need for education unless you show them,” explains Dr. Emory Campbell, the Foundation for Educational Excellence’s 2018 Peggy May Inspiration Award recipient. “Grants give teachers more flexibility to help the students learn. One of the things that helps a student learn is exposure.” Campbell says he believes that education is the key to a successful life. “Even if you don’t contribute to the community, you can enrich yourself by being educated,” Campbell states. “It allows you to read, to travel, to interpret what you experience. Education is selfgratifying, besides what it allows you to do for others.” Dr. Campbell will be recognized for his lifetime contributions to the cultural and environmental heritage of the Lowcountry and South Carolina. The Peggy May Inspiration Award recognizes persons who demonstrate extraordinary dedication, passion, and skills that influence and inspire local students and is awarded during the Jeans & Jewels event each March. There’s no shortage of passionate educators or innovative ideas to get students excited about education. The 2017 list of grant recipients includes many wonderful local projects from thoughtful Bluffton
Dr. Emory Campbell, 2018 Inspiration Award recipient
photograph by lloyd wainscott
educators. Numerous additional grants can be explored on the foundation’s website, whether the life-changing experience included using drones to teach the theory of flight, to photography, writing and producing plays, or recycling. These are the experiences that can capture a student’s mind and develop an intrinsic love of learning.
GIVING FAR AND WIDE Late in 2017, officials from the Foundation for Educational Excellence surprised Beaufort County public school faculty members from 14 different schools with balloons and oversized checks. The 18 grants awarded ranged from $179 to $1,500 and totaled more than $10,000. These were the Foundation’s Innovative Teacher Grants for Fall 2017. Established in 2007, the Foundation awarded its first grants in 2009 and has awarded over $180,000 in grants to the teachers and students in the local public school system since its inception. The grants are awarded across the county twice a year, and have allowed thousands of local students unique educational opportunities that they might not have otherwise had without the financial boost. Last Fall, in conjunction with the Foundation, The Rotary Club of Okatie fully funded two of the grants awarded, and contributions