Eleanor, Author at Red Hook Education Foundation - Page 2 of 2

Linden Avenue Middle School Guitar Club Gets New Instruments

RHEF recently funded the purchase of new guitars for the popular middle school guitar club. Over the last 10 years the club has grown to have up to 20 regular participating members, but many do not have guitars of their own to practice on. The new guitars will be used from year to year by kids that are interested in playing but are not in a position to purchase one of their own.

Club advisor Rob Kaplan says that “in this era of over-testing the creativity of music and hobby of playing guitar can help inspire the excellence of our students!”

RHEF’s Winter Night Out

On Thursday night, January 29th, 2015, RHEF hosted “RHEF Celebrates the Arts” at Bread & Bottle Bakery & Restaurant in the Village of Red Hook (7496 S. Broadway, Red Hook — now the location of Yum Yum).  Supporters stopped in after work to raise a glass to the arts. Some stayed for the evening to hang out with friends and celebrate arts education in our community.

The evening included an arts-themed raffle. Ten percent of sales went directly to the Red Hook Education Foundation.

The event was sponsored by The Arts Oasis, the erstwhile multi-arts center in Red Hook village which offered literary, performance, and fine arts classes for students of all ages and stages of life.

Computer Programming Comes to Red Hook

Seventy-four students from elementary through the high school are learning the basics of computer programming using a web based program called Crunchzilla. The program is intended to be a fun and exciting introduction to programming concepts and building computer games. With funding from RHEF and the guidance of six Red Hook teachers, this after-school initiative seeks to spark students’ interest in computer programming with the goal of building regular after school clubs and ultimately introduce computer programming in to the district’s course offerings.

RHEF Supports Career and College Transitions

Thanks to the support of our generous community RHEF continues to help fund the work of Career and College Transition Specialist Peg D’Onofrio. In addition to two information-packed seminars on college admissions and financial aid, Ms. D’Onofrio was able to organize field trips to college fairs this fall.

For the last several years the Foundation has supported Career & College Transition, initially by working with community volunteers to stage career and college fairs, and for the last two years by providing funding for programs lead by Career & College Transition Specialist Peg D’Onofrio. In addition to two information-packed seminars on college admissions and financial aid, Ms. D’Onofrio was able to organize field trips to college fairs this fall.

“The buses were sold out so to speak,” says D’Onofrio. “I really believe there were kids (and parents) on those buses that would not typically have engaged in that kind of event. I do think that my position has reached some of those kids who were not considering college and now feel it is an option. It has allowed for more brainstorming and dialogue and parents are more involved in the process because they are able to meet together with me and their son or daughter. I see more students engaged.”

“Thanks to the support of the Red Hook Education Foundation we have made great strides in how we deliver college and career counseling,” says Joe DeCaro, Director of Pupil Personnel Services.

These programs have been so well attended and the feedback from students and parents so outstanding, that RHEF pledged to continue to support Career and College Transition programs at up to $5,000 for the 2014-15 school year.

Previous Career Outreach News

Over the summer of 2013, education foundation volunteers wrote and secured a grant for the school district from the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation The  $5,710 award paid for a college tour for low-income students and parents. “With RHEF’s assistance, I was able to take 12 students and 4 parents on a two-day, five-college tour,” says Career & College Outreach Counselor Peg D’Onofrio. “Students, including sophomores and juniors, were amazed at the opportunities that await them at college and many learned of financial aid rewards that they didn’t know existed. .. Inspiring these students was the goal and, by all accounts, a goal that was overwhelmingly attained.”

This fall, RHEF donated $2,500 to the district to support workshops and information sessions organized by D’Onofrio during the 2013-14 school year. D’Onofrio has been guiding district students working on college selection and application, as well as financial aid and scholarship opportunities. “Thanks to the support of the Red Hook Education Foundation we have made great strides in how we deliver college and career counseling,” says Joe DeCaro, Director of Pupil Personnel Services. “The guidance counselors are also very impressed with the level of service Peg is capable of delivering. I actually get emails form students and parents explaining how helpful she is.”

Focus On Technology

As the Red Hook school district explores the opportunities and challenges that come along with increased wi-fi access for the LAMS and high school campuses, RHEF is supporting professional development opportunities for staff and faculty. Over the summer, RHEF funded the cost for Donna Seelbach, District Director of Technology, to attend the Building Learning Communities Conference, which focused on how meaningful teaching and learning are enhanced by technology.

The district recently installed classroom camera and projection equipment paid for with a grant of $6,579 from RHEF, funding the balance of the district’s needs for this equipment. Standardizing technology from classroom to classroom gives teachers consistent access to instructional tools, providing for a more highly visual and interactive teaching environment.

Red Hook Students Compete in Debate Tournament at Bard

On March 9, Red Hook students competed in the Bard Debate Union’s (pictured above) first annual Debate Tournament, featuring 2 rounds of debate competition, luncheon, and an awards ceremony. Linden Avenue Middle School sent 5 teams, which competed against each other, and Red Hook high school sent 2 teams, which competed against 2 teams from Rhinebeck, and 4 teams fielded from the Bard High School Early College (BHSEC) schools in Queens, Manhattan, and Newark, NJ. The RHEF was a sponsor of this event, hosted by the Bard Center for Civic Engagement.

Team and individual awards were given to the following participants: in the high school division BHSEC A took 1st place, with Rhinebeck A in 2nd place, Red Hook A in 3rd place, and BHSEC B in 4th place. Individual high school debate awards: Hannah Frishberg (BHSEC A) 1st; Callie Goldstone (Rhinebeck A) 2nd; Joe Bryant (Red Hook A) 3rd; Gabe Haddad (BHSEC D) 4th  and “Mo” Tyler (BHSEC C) in 5th place. Individual middle school debate awards: Caleb Wootan, 1st; Elenore Zellneck, 2nd; Joseph Becker, 3rd; Abby Foster, 4th, and Aidan Murtha in 5th place.

Working in partnership with Bard Debate Union and the Bard Trustee Leader Scholar program, the RHEF has helped to start up the LAMS and Red Hook High School debate clubs over the last year. Many thanks to Red Hook faculty Ronald Dombrowski, Tom O’Connor, and James Armstrong, Bard Debate coaches Ruth Zisman and Jennifer Rankin, and especially to the Bard Debate Union students, for supporting the growth of debate in our community and beyond.

Rosanne Cash Concert Benefit Is a Big Success

Thank you to all who supported the Rosanne Cash Concert Benefit for the Red Hook Education Foundation. We reached and surpassed our fundraising goal of $30,000, and donations are still coming in. Over 230 people turned out for a wonderful evening at the Bard Spiegeltent. Rosanne Cash and John Leventhal gave a lovely, memorable performance, and could not have been more generous with their kind words of support.

Tremendous thanks to Julia Crowley and Tricia Reed for creating such an ideal event to toast the completion of our first year of operations!

Photo of Lorelei Smith, singer, Red Hook Class of 2015, and Rosanne Cash, singer/songwriter/author, at the Bard Spiegeltent, June 30, 2011 — by Andy Wainwright