Ann Arbor Public Schools Educational Foundation

Congratulations to Ann Arbor’s Huron High School!

In the January 2009 issue of U.S. News, Huron was ranked as one of the best high schools in the nation.  Receiving a silver medal, Huron was praised for having high scores in state-wide performance tests and efficiently preparing students for University level studies.  Huron was also praised in January’s Business Week as the best high school in Michigan, where it was given a high score of 9/10.

Read the article from U.S. News and Business Week!

Fund Fact

Arriving at the Ann Arbor public schools only a few years ago, the Disabilities Awareness Workshop has made a large impact on the local elementary schools.  Each year, fourth grade students from all elementary schools in the city spend one day experiencing what it’s like for people who have disabilities.  They receive glimpses of the challenges associated with disabilities and see the various obstacles that must be overcome.  During the day of the workshop, there are three different stations that students rotate in and each station provides a view into different physical, visual, and learning disabilities.  Along with the stations, there are hundreds of related activities available for students to participate in. 

While the students participate in hands-on activities, the experience is more personalized when disabled community members come to the schools and speak about their experiences.  The most recent workshop, which happened in January 2009, invited three members of the community to speak with the students: Carolyn Garwi, who lost her sight as an adult; Steve Schwartz, who lost all of his fingers and both feet as the result of an infection; and Renee Schwartz, a Washtenaw Intermediate School District classroom teacher who spoke about the students in her classroom.  Each of the speakers affected the students by being open and honest about their experiences with disabilities and providing them with the lesson to treat everyone with dignity and respect. 

On the day of the workshop, the participating students are given another task; they take their experiences and test their school buildings for accessibility to disabled children and report their findings. This workshop was introduced to the community so that local kids could empathize with those who are different by experiencing the daily trials that may occur.

This free workshop is an all day event that relies on individuals, volunteers, and other non-profits to ensure a successful day.  Currently, the disability workshop uses rented equipment from the Oakland County school district to the host the event.  While this situation currently works, the workshop is hoping to raise enough funds to set up their own equipment, which will allow the program to operate year round, host the program more freely, and rely less on the rental companies.

Testimonial

I want to thank the Ann Arbor Public Schools Educational Foundation for making the December 9 and 10th science presentations possible for our students at Carpenter Elementary School.  All 325 of our children participated in sessions led by the Detroit Science Center for over the two days.  I was able to attend at least part of each session and saw first-hand the children’s interest and excitement.  As a Title I school with over 30% of our children receiving free or reduced lunch and speaking many languages from Arabic to Vietnamese, our children really benefit from this kind of hands-on programming.

I truly appreciate the generosity of the Foundation in granting this learning opportunity to our children and staff.  The DSC made a special effort to link their presentations to our curriculum and I have spoken with several teachers who plan on using some of the ideas and activities from the presentation in the lessons next year.

In addition to the help received for the science program, the AAPSEF has helped our school in the arts.  Deb Katz and the band students at Carpenter and Pittsfield schools want to thank the AAPSEF for making the purchase of additional music possible.  This additional music will add to our fifth graders interest and enjoyment as they become more proficient with their instruments.  The additional selections will also provide appropriate challenges as the year progresses. We truly appreciate the generosity of the Foundation is supporting Mrs. Katz’s efforts to improve her program. 

Again, thank you to the AAPSEF for making these programs and additional resources possible.

Sincerely,
Ron Collins, Principal

A special thank you.

A big thanks to Myra Klarman who has provided us with exceptional photography for all of our materials. All of the high-quality portrait shots you see on our website, brochure, advertising and this newsletter is courtesy of Myra. To see more of Myra’s work, go to www.myraklarman.com.