LEVERETT — At a table in the first grade classroom at Leverett Elementary School are two pedal stools where students can let out energy as they complete activities.
“Kids love it because they can move their bodies while thinking and doing work,” said teacher Stella Douglas.
The bicycle desk, as it is known, is not only popular, but among various flexible seating options available to first graders, which also include floor rocker chairs and a bench.
Across the hall in second grade teacher Amy Boyden’s classroom is a recently renovated book nook, with cushy seats on the floor, underneath a mood light, and next to a shelf holding numerous books with more modern titles.
“We had books that were turning yellow, and kids didn’t want to even open them,” Boyden said.
Both teachers are among those whose students have benefited from the support of the Leverett Education Foundation, a nonprofit, community-run organization that formed in 2019 to deal with an increasingly challenging financial situation for the town’s school. The tough times have not abated, and over the last six years the Leverett Education Foundation has awarded 34 grants totaling more than $125,000 for various initiatives.
“We’ve been increasing the number of grants because teachers understand this resource is available to them,” said Board President Steve Weiss.
Weiss said the organization has had success raising money because it’s been able to show that the school is a major resource for Leverett, and people want to support that.
“We’re trying to make the case that the school is an important asset for the town,” Weiss said.
When the pandemic hit, the foundation worked with the Parent-Teacher Organization to get equipment and items such as tents, so classes could be held outside.
But in a small, mostly residential community, Weiss said the outreach has also gone to area businesses. Much of the fundraising is done in the fall and then applications and awards come in the spring, with an occasional off-cycle grant announced.
The foundation works directly with Siby Adina, the school principal, and teachers are walked through the process, so they aware that anywhere from $200 to $20,000 may be available.
“We try to give them as much flexibility as possible,” Weiss said. “We don’t want to tell the school what they need.”
Adina said the funding has become important to Leverett Elementary.
“It might be bringing a special presenter, or something we might not be able to buy,” Adina said.
Typically the foundation uses themes, with outdoor education a prominent one, which has included refurbishing the greenhouse and getting new supplies for it, and a challenge course with high and low rope elements.
This year, with signs scattered around town reading “Leverett for LES,” the theme is refreshing and refurbishing the classrooms, hallways and outdoor spaces at the school.
Five to six residents make up the board of directors, all of whom are committed to education, some with children in the schools and others who are community members, like Weiss, whose two children attended the school many years ago.
While bringing in as much as the Amherst Education Foundation, which has an annual Trivia Bee, and Northampton, which has an annual Spelling Bee, Weiss said the Leverett foundation can address problems at the margins as everyone feels the economic pinch.
“In small towns like ours, groups are taking the initiative to improve the community,” Weiss said.
Among other items funded are a horseshoe whiteboard table that third grade students, in small groups, can use. Third grade teacher Kristen Avonti said they may find it easier to work out a math problem.
There is a whiteboard easel in kindergarten where teacher Michaela Kelly has the children put their names next to the food they will be having for lunch that day.
And in early childhood education, teacher Jessie Jean-Louis has the Woodsy Wednesday program’s special suits, allowing the youngsters, and teachers, to venture into the woods nearby and be comfortable that their clothes aren’t going to be stained.
Other funding includes $3,000 for library books and materials, $925 for a sensory room setup and equipment, and $606 for art supplies.
In the last cycle, with awards made at the end of April, $5,000 went to math curriculum materials for the fifth and sixth grades, and $5,000 was dedicated to get a new playground underway. Adina said the $150,000 project will depend on Americans with Disabilities Act grant funding and a request from the town Community Preservation Act account.
Weiss said the foundation is also sponsoring events, like a community forum on the school budget and outreach to state legislators to how legislative actions can affect the school.
The Leverett Education Foundation’s website can be found at leveretteducationfoundation.org.
