Mayor’s Award Winners

Talk about some amazing organizations! Take a look at the incredible service to students as we honor this year’s recipients of the Mayor’s Award for Outstanding Partner and System-wide Partner, presented by Mayor Karl Dean at the BRAVO! Luncheon. Congratulations to all of these deserving Partners and many, many thanks for all you do to support student success!

Winners: 

Hospital Corporation of America and Hillwood Academy of Health Sciences 

Over the past year alone, HCA volunteers have logged over 200 volunteer hours. They’ve provided classroom speakers, hosted two college and career fairs, a teacher externship and a school beautification day. They also conducted student internships at Centennial Hospital and judged student capstone projects — all with the goal of increasing graduation rates, daily attendance and ACT scores. HCA also contributed $100,000 to build an additional health science lab where students can earn their EMS and CNA certifications BEFORE they graduate high school.

System-Wide Partnership – Assistance League of Nashville 

Assistance League is an all-volunteer organization with 88 members and no paid staff. Operation School Bell is their primary program designed to provide new school clothes and other necessities to economically disadvanted children. Assistance League held fundraisers for the wholesale purchase of standard school attire and contributed nearly $90,000 in clothing and other items to 3,283 students. Because of their work, 94% of principals reported a reduced need for emergency clothing and reduced time out of the classroom for dress code issues. Assistance League members donated over 2,500 hours of volunteer service this school year.

Honorable Mentions 

U.S. Community Credit Union for its partnership with McGavock High School 

In this exemplary partnership, there is actually a student-run USCCU branch located at McGavock High. A loaned employee manages the branch daily during banking hours and works with the students who run the bank itself. Students opening an account are counseled on how to balance a checkbook and manage their finances. Over 600 students have participated in their financial literacy, marketing and sales program.In the past year alone, over 2,250 hours of volunteer service have been logged by USCCU.

Deloitte for its partnership with Antioch High School

When Deloitte professionals offered to help families complete the federal financial aid forms for students, over 700 people attended the learning sessions. In their “Be the First” program, employees worked with 11th and 12th graders on resume writing and interviewing and study skills. They then practiced with students in mock interviews to better prepare them for college admissions and career opportunities. For helping students truly “Be the First” on their pathway to higher education and successful careers.

Nashville Division of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for its partnership with Stratford STEM Magnet High School

From hydrologists to biologists to public relations to the Commander, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has provided 502 hours of volunteer efforts. Over 400 students participated in Engineering Day and 101 students entered the Stratford STEM Expo with projects directly aligned with state standards in math, science and language arts.

Honorable Mention, System-wide Partnership – United4Hope

United4Hope has a singular vision – to help students achieve academic excellence by developing partnerships between faith-based organizations and our schools. More than 175 volunteers contributed 2,256 volunteer hours in 9 schools. United4Hope leadership meets with principals to identify and meet school needs. Student support this year included tutoring, reading buddies, book fairs, standard school attire and a career night.

Hot Topic & Mt. View Elementary Partnership

Hot Topic’s Tennessee Distribution Center and Mt. View are now in our 4th year of partnership. Hot Topic’s primary focus continues to be fundraising through activities and donations at our Distribution Center, allowing all of our Hot Topic team members to get involved and make a difference even when they can’t be present in the school.

Partnership Activities:

• Donations of apparel items & prizes for student incentive programs including the Mt. View Chapter of Little Kids Rock
• Donation of gift baskets to be auctioned at Mt. View’s annual Fall Festival
• Continued our Box Tops for Education collection program at Hot Topic
• Held our Annual Chili Cook-Off at Hot Topic to raise money for the Angel Tree program where Hot Topic provided Christmas gifts for 10 children of Mt. View families
• Donated miscellaneous office supplies throughout the year
• Annual Bake Sale to raise money for our Back-To-School Supplies drive
• Raised $3,250 during an employee sale to purchase donation requests

Nearly Two Decades of Support, Deloitte Continues to Add Partnerships

Deloitte is proud to be an ongoing PENCIL Partner with four area schools. Each year, more than 200 Deloitte volunteers provide more than 2,500 hours of education-focused volunteer service. Deloitte is committed to working with students, teachers, and our business partners to make a difference in our schools.

Warner Elementary – Deloitte has been a partner with Warner Elementary for 18 years. Each year, Deloitte volunteers teach the Junior Achievement curriculum to all Warner classes, hold a school supplies drive, host Mother’s Day Store, which provides a gift for each student to share with their mother or caregiver, and participate in Read Across America.

Antioch High School – Deloitte is an Academy Partner with Antioch’s Tennessee Credit Union Business and Marketing Academy. This year, Deloitte provided Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) assistance to 128 families, job shadowing opportunities to 25 students, hosted the Be the First program, lead a Junior Achievement Company program, co-hosted the Academy’s Career Conference, offered mock interviews to 40 students, and participated in Principal for a Day.

McGavock High School – Deloitte is a business partner with McGavock High School. This year, Deloitte volunteers provided FAFSA assistance to 118 families and donated incentive door prizes. Volunteers participated in the First and Last Day Celebration, Professional Development Fair, and the McGavock Cluster Coalition.

Overton High School – Deloitte is an Academy Partner with Overton’s Information Technology Academy. Deloitte volunteers provided FAFSA assistance to 43 families, field trips to 80 students, and job shadowing for 10 students. Volunteers also participated in Academy Open House and Principal for a Day.

Partnership Brings Cultural Experiences to Students

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, the Nashville Symphony, and the Center for Non-Profit Management partnered together to support Nashville Art Works: Career Exploration in the Cultural Arts.  This multi-day workshop offered teens ages 14-18 from Hume-Fogg, Nashville School for the Arts, Overton, Antioch, and Cane Ridge Public High Schools an opportunity to explore various careers in cultural non-profit organizations: The partner institutions provide students with a look at careers in the non-profit organization through hands-on activities and project-based learning. Professionals from each organization mentor students in this project-based and fast paced week-long event.

The Nashville Art Works program continually evolved in design through the participants’ feedback and in response to the needs of Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS).  Initiated in the Spring of 2013 for five days and repeated in the Fall of 2013 for four days, each institution provided students with a behind the scenes look at their organization, an opportunity to talk with professionals that ranges from the director to performers to marketing staff to educators.  The executive director of Metro Nashville Art Commission also led a session to give students the larger perspective on the role of cultural non-profits in the city.  This program truly brings the best of each institution to the participants and combines the talents of the staff to create a unique experience for the benefit of students.

Anne Henderson, Director of Education and Outreach

Frist Center for the Visual Arts

Aegis and McGavock Hit the Ground Running in New Partnership

Aegis Sciences Corporation is a proud partner of the McGavock High School Aegis Sciences Academy of Health Science & Law.  Over the past year, Aegis has contributed more than $100,000 in community investment including 866 team member volunteer hours benefiting the school.

Aegis is passionate about serving the students of McGavock through Academy support, fundraising, job shadowing, and hands-on learning activities.  To directly support the initiatives of the Academy, an Aegis Team Member chairs the Aegis Sciences Corporation Academy of Health Science & Law Advisory Board.  Approximately 100 students each school year participate in job shadowing at Aegis and learn how the Team works together to achieve its goals.  LabFest 2013, an outdoor concert was held to benefit the school’s chemistry laboratories and to raise community awareness.  Aegis Team Members mentor students through the STEMming Brighter Futures Event held at Aegis which gives students and teachers a real-world laboratory case-study experience.  Aegis also mentors students presenting project work at the MNPS Project Expo.

Aegis is committed to serving McGavock High School as a PENCIL Partner and inspiring other businesses in our community to invest in our future.

Avenue Bank Cherishes PENCIL Partnership

We are very blessed at Avenue Bank to be partnered with the devoted staff and wonderful students at Smithson-Craighead Academy. This kindergarten through fourth-grade charter school is an inspiration to the employees of Avenue Bank and we always look forward to our next project with them.

We welcomed the students, parents and teachers on the first day of school with encouraging words and refreshments. We also had our annual supply drive for the school encouraging each department to give uniforms and supplies for the new year. This is a great help to the school, but also an encouraging kick-off to the school year for the Avenue Bank employees.

In April, several of our employees spent time at the school tutoring some of the students in math before the annual TCAP tests. The tutoring was one-on-one with students, as well as in small groups.

Avenue Bank truly enjoys our PENCIL Partnership with Smithson-Craighead Academy. We are always eager for each new school year to begin. The future of Nashville is in these students’ hands and we’re thrilled to participate in a part of their education.

 

REALTORS® SUPPORT EDUCATION

The Greater Nashville Association of REALTORS® has been a PENCIL PARTNER for more than 25 years. Our members support H.G. Hill Middle School – the faculty, staff and students – through a variety of programs each year, including:

• REALTORS® Reaching Out Annual Supply Drive, raising over $3,000 for our PENCIL Partner school
• Landscaping, including the addition of new picnic tables last year
• Recognizing students for outstanding academics and character at our PENCIL Partner school through quarterly Pride of the Panther Awards receptions
• Affirming the faculty and staff with a “Welcome Back” breakfast

“Realtors know the value of quality education. The results of well-educated students and strong school systems are far-reaching, benefiting communities, the economy and our region as a whole. The Greater Nashville Association of Realtors believes in showing support for public education in Middle Tennessee. We are honored to partner with H.G. Hill Middle School.” – Hagan Stone, 2014 GNAR President

 Go Panthers!

Rogers Group Builds New Partnership at Hull-Jackson

After being a PENCIL Partner for more than 14 years, Rogers Group entered into a new PENCIL Partnership with Hull-Jackson Montessori Magnet at the beginning of the 2013/2014 school year. What a wonderful partnership it has proven to be!  Twelve Reading Partners from the Rogers Group Corporate office go to the school on a weekly basis to assist with the reading needs of several children.  The bond built between the Reading buddy and the student has proven beneficial to both!

During the annual “Read Me Week”, our Reading Partners stepped out of their comfort zones and read to their student’s entire classroom. A couple of the classrooms read “The Lorax” and afterwards were provided with packets of flower seeds to take home and plant, as well as seeds to plant in their classroom.  The students were so excited and could not wait to see their flowers grow!

Rogers Group employees have also volunteered during the current school year to assist with the needs of the school’s annual play (ie, building/designing the set structures, costumes, etc.) as well as assisted in the cafeteria during the lunch break.

Rogers Group’s motto is “Creating opportunities for people to succeed”.  As we continue with this new partnership, it will be exciting to see the children of Hull-Jackson continue to succeed in their lives through the continuous hard work provided by the school’s staff, as well as the volunteerism of the Rogers Group employees and the many opportunities that will be provided for the employees to participate.

– Connie Edwards, Compensation Administrator/Analyst

Connie Serves as the PENCIL Partner Coordinator

A Gift She Never Expected

Esperance Ndayizeye, Stratford High School senior with Eric Polk, PENCIL JTG specialist

When Esperance Ndayizeye’s family moved to the United States from Burundi, they were in search of a better life. America is all Esperance has known – not the extreme poverty and violence that exists in this Southeastern African country. That “better life” her parents dreamed of now includes something her family never could have imagined. Esperance is one of 30 students selected for the Bridges to Belmont program, which means she’ll be receiving a full-ride scholarship.

“I thought I couldn’t get in,” she said.  But after some encouragement from teachers, and her Jobs for Tennessee Graduates Career Specialist at Stratford Eric Polk, she got the courage up to apply. She always knew she’d go to college but never had her sights set on Belmont. With eight brothers and sisters, financially, it just wasn’t a possibility.

Launched in March 2013, Bridges to Belmont provides an incredible opportunity for Metro Nashville Public Schools students who may not have considered Belmont as an option. Beginning with Maplewood and Stratford high schools in its first year, the program has expanded from 26 to 30 students and now extends the offer to Whites Creek and Pearl-Cohn seniors. Students are selected after an application and interview process and are granted four consecutive years at Belmont tuition-free. They’ll also have room and board, and books – for free. This is an investment that could exceed $10 million in the first four years of the program.

Bravo, Belmont!

Esperance and the other students have toured the campus and will attend an intensive summer institute to help them transition into college and get acquainted with campus life. She’s excited about the entire experience – meeting new people, studying social work and psychology and making her dreams a reality.

I’m a very proud graduate of Belmont University so I was very excited to meet with Esperance to tell her how much she was going to love it. And I couldn’t help but think that she almost missed out on this opportunity if it weren’t for caring teachers who saw her potential. “My advice would be don’t second-guess yourself in life,” she told me. “If there’s an opportunity in life, just take it.”

Well said.

Many thanks to the leadership at Belmont for granting this opportunity to students like Esperance. I know she will make you proud.

– Nikki Baker

Battling Unhealthy Habits Begins with Education

It may be hard to imagine that you could be craving some fresh pineapple or green apples, but have no way of buying them. Making a simple run to a grocery store is not simple at all. It’s five or more miles away. You have no transportation, a low income. It is a reality that fresh fruit and vegetables within certain urban communities may be scarce and create food challenges. Food deserts by definition are areas that are populated with low-income residents who have little or no transportation and very few grocery stores exist. One study counted food deserts as “urban areas with 10 or fewer (grocery) stores and no stores with more than 20 employees. This means healthy food is very often replaced with fast food and convenient store purchases because they’re close and available. 

Because North Nashville has been identified as a food desert, PENCIL’s Bordeaux Northwest Family Resource Center (FRC) has partnered with organizations and agencies to help assist and educate the community. FRC Director Archie Davis organized an event to inspire healthy .

On April 9, Marathon Petroleum, United Way of Middle TN, Chef David Owens, Nashville Mobile Market, Community Food Advocates, Nossi College of Art and Metro Schools, presented a food education program to students at Bordeaux Elementary called “From the Garden to the Table”. This program works to see the children and adults of the community restored to a sense of good health and wellness. “From the Garden to the Table” provides the opportunity for people to gain more knowledge about fresh fruits and vegetables. It introduces its participants to fun ways to prepare meals with fresh fruits and vegetables. It also demonstrates methods of preparing fresh fruits and vegetables without jeopardizing their nutritional value. Many people overcook their vegetables because the taste is not appeasing to them in its most nutritious state. Through this presentation people are exposed to delicious, nutritional ways to prepare these and other foods.

Chef David Owens presented a cooking demonstration with the third and fourth grade students. He introduced the students to the characters of his story cookbook, The Adventures of Brocklee and the Little Chef. These characters educate students about obesity, food allergies, being active and eating disorders. Marathon Petroleum awarded a cookbook to the top 25 readers in third grade and the top 25 readers in fourth grade via a list complied by MNPS’ Literacy Coach, Carla Burgess. After the food education and cooking demonstration, students were selected by their classroom teachers to participate in a Project-Based Learning activity – a gardening session in the school’s courtyard. Under the direction of Marathon Petroleum’s Carole Raley, these students got down and dirty to plant cabbages, peppers, herbs and cucumbers in their very own school garden. These students really enjoyed the gardening and signed up to tend to the garden as needed. Parents and area residents came out to learn more about the locations and available items on the Nashville Mobile Market truck. They also heard about ingredient substitutes and available fresh fruit and vegetable options in the Bordeaux community from Jackie Contreras with Community Food Advocates. Nossi College of Art donated the time of senior level videographers and photographers to capture this awesome event on video. By the end of this event, the school custodian, cafeteria staff, community leaders, teachers, school support staff, parents, students and residents were excited to have received the resources and education that would afford them a healthier lifestyle within their own community.

-Archie Davis, Bordeaux Northwest FRC Director