2008 Grants to Teachers

The Pioneer-Pleasant Vale Academic Foundation funded the following grants this year:

• Anger Management program for the grade school
• Art Smart program for grades T-1 Thru 2nd Grade
• Novel unit for the Jr. High classes
• Two Smart Board Airliner slates (Grade school and High school)
• Partial funding of two interactive response unit systems for the Grade school.

The total amount funded through these grants was $4,300.

5th Grade Steps Back in Time!

Each month Mrs. Whatley’s 5th grade class travels back in time to the colonial period. They are able to do this through the Colonial Williamsburg Electronic Field Trip. The Pleasant Vale 5th graders look forward each month to seeing the new broadcast an interacting online with each new show. The Colonial Williamsburg Electronic Field Trips are live televised broadcasts that bring American history alive in the classroom. Relevant stories of people, places, and events from the past help motivate today’s learners. Students may participate in online voting, call-ins, or email question to Colonial Williamsburg historians.

The package includes seven programs plus year-long teacher and student online resources. The series cost $500.00, but Pleasant Vale was able to receive a scholarship through the Oklahoma Foundation of Excellence that provided us with the entire series at no cost. We are very thankful for programs like this to help us promote fun learning in the classroom.

What a wonderful year we are having here at Pioneer-Pleasant Vale Public Schools. Now that I have been here for over half a year, it is becoming very clear to me that this school system does live up to its reputation as being one of the best in the state. Our faculty and staff are very good educators who go above and beyond the call of duty for our students. Out parents and community supporters are always active and willing to help when the call is sounded and that is vital to the success of a school. PPV schools are a great place to be and to educate our future leaders.

This morning I met with our local legislative leaders who represent our district at the capitol. They were not able to paint a very good picture for our state and its financial outlook for the coming years. Unfortunately, education is one of the areas that is in line to take a pretty big hit in funding. As you know, public schools in Oklahoma are funded 48th in our country based on per pupil expenditure; therefore, it is especially tough on our school when our funds are cut at the state level. Couple that statistic with the fact that we are currently operating on the same budget level we had two years ago due to a state budget freeze last year and no additional funds from the state, and the situation becomes even worse. I say all of this so that you all will understand how important our foundation and our supporters really are to us. Our foundation allows our teachers access to materials that the school cannot otherwise provide. All of the items go directly to the classroom and are utilized for instruction. I wish I could tell everyone that the school can afford to equip all of our teachers with the latest and best teaching materials, but unfortunately that is not the case during this time in Oklahoma.

We are always on the lookout for additional funding from outside sources and grants. In fact, I have applied for over $25,000 worth of grants in the last week alone. As we look to the future, our school system will continue to grow and succeed despite the state’s financial woes. Like the vast majority of schools in this state, It may be in the form of a school bond issue or other areas of fund raising. No matter what the source, it is vital that our students are afforded the same opportunities other children have in this state. Our strong tradition and pride in this great school will motivate us to continually raise the bar and be successful as a school district.
- Brent Koontz

From the PPVAF President

On behalf of the Pioneer-Pleasant Vale academic foundation, I would like to thank you for taking time to view our website.

The mission statement is listed in our about us section. We have hold an annual banquet recognizing students above 5th grade for their academic success each year. Fund raisers include a Duck Derby, honor banquet, selling pumpkins, paper airplane contest, a local game contest and outside efforts asking for grants and outside funding. We have been recognizing our 50 and 60 year alumni at our football homecoming.

We have listed grants funded so you can see what our teachers are asking for and what we are funding. Each year we have requests that were not funded because of lack of funds.

Our photos show our program in action. We have helped teachers and students have a positive experience in the classroom.

The support of individuals, businesses and alumni are the backbone of the PPVAF. We hope you will take the time to examine it and find out what we believe. Perhaps, more importantly, you will see how you can help. We accept financial assistance, volunteer help, gifts-in-kind, matching funds, memorials, honorariums and teacher tributes. By combining your gift with funds raised by foundation events, your tax deductible donation can be put to work providing meaningful support to our school and students.
- Martha Gabriel, President