The Rotary Club of Sedona has launched the largest fundraising effort in its 68-year history to raise $105,000 to help the Sedona-Oak Creek School District hire a community education director for the Wildcat Extended Day Program at West Sedona School.
“It’s a program that provides a safe space for kids before and after school — often a crucial benefit for working parents,” SOCSD Superintendent Tom Swaninger, Ph.D., said. “Looking ahead, we plan to hire a community education director, whose primary role will be to develop a more robust program. This will include tutoring services, enrichment opportunities, clubs, guest speakers and even field trips. It won’t happen overnight, but that’s the goal — to create a program that’s not just a place for kids to go while their families are at work, but one that enriches and connects with what they’re learning in school.”
The $105,000 will be used to pay for the new employee’s salary and benefits and to expand the free before- and after-school program, which currently serves between 50 and 80 students daily, with the highest turnout on early-release Wednesdays. Swaninger said that SOCSD is committed to funding the program regardless of Rotary’s contributions, calling their support “a help to our budget” but not a requirement for the position’s existence. He added that the job listing has been posted and candidates have been interviewed.
Swaninger said the program’s expenses would expected to rise for things such as new equipment and field trip costs to make it a more “robust” program once the new director is hired but was unable to estimate what those costs would be until the director is hired.
“Our club really wanted to have a signature project that would make a difference in the lives of families in Sedona and the Verde Valley,” Rotary Club of Sedona Charitable Fund President Jean Barton said. “A couple of years ago, we came up with a theme to guide both our philanthropy as well as service, to some extent, and we came up with ‘working hard for working families.’ When we looked at the needs of working families, obviously housing is way up there, but childcare is way up there … so the extended day program meets all the criteria … And it actually should help the employers in Sedona, so that their parents are not … having to leave work to pick the kids up early.”
Barton added that she recently started volunteering for the Wildcat Extended Day program.
“I think the kids need adult supervision. Let the kids work things out by themselves for the most part, but a lot of bullying starts really in the elementary years. It’s human nature and you can teach kids how to respect kids that are different than they are,” Barton said.
“The Rotary Club of Sedona Charitable Fund has already received a $25,000 grant from the Arizona Community Foundation to jumpstart the campaign,” a Rotary press release stated. “Chelsea Burk-Lielich, ACF of Sedona’s new regional philanthropic advisor, presented the grant check during the club’s March 4 kickoff event … To maximize the effect of local giving, generous Rotary members will match community donations dollar for dollar up to $25,000, doubling the power of every contribution.”
Community members can support the initiative by donating at sedonarotary.org or by mailing a check to the Rotary Club of Sedona Charitable Fund, P.O. Box 2170, Sedona, AZ 86339 with the memo “Wildcat Extended Day Program.” For details, visit the website sedonarotary.org or call Barton at (612) 750-1745.
