As school districts continue to face tough financial decisions, they can count on the generosity of local community members, who donate their time and money to keep students engaged and inspired.

Since 1995, the South Whidbey Schools Foundation has been supporting the students and staff at the South Whidbey School District by funding resources and experiences that would otherwise be unfunded or partially funded, such as microscopes, graphing calculators, guest speakers, books, tickets to “Hamilton” the musical and field trips that will be remembered in adulthood, according to President Shelly Ackerman.

Over the past two and a half years, the foundation has been funding a part-time volunteer coordinator position, she said.

For just seven hours every week, the volunteer coordinator helps the district bring in community members who have the time and skills to support teachers in the classroom, speaks with staff to learn about needs, ensures volunteers get the necessary training, maintains volunteer schedules and collects data to assess the impacts of volunteers on student learning, according to Foundation Board Members Cynthia Shelton and Cindy Rupp.

The volunteer coordinator also serves as a bridge between the kindergarten, elementary school, middle school and community members and organizations who are eager to offer opportunities or their expertise for free, but need a point of contact who can point them in the right direction, they said.

Because of limited funds, the volunteer coordinator focuses primarily on the kindergarten and the elementary school, where volunteers are recruited to serve as chaperones during field trips or to help groups of students hone their math and reading skills, Shelton said.

Now, the foundation is hoping to raise enough funds to increase the coordinator’s hours to 10 or more, increasing services in the the middle school where subject-matter experts are needed to serve as role models and get students excited about the ways they can put what they learned in the classroom into practice, Shelton and Rupp said.

In the 2023-24 school year, community members donated 1,687 hours of volunteer support to the elementary school, exceeding pre-pandemic levels, according to information provided by Rupp.

Their support makes life easier for students and teachers.

“It’s like having cake go down more easily,” Shelton said. “If you have some frosting with it, it’s a lot more easy to eat it, and it’s fun to eat it.”

Additionally, Ackerman said, supporting the students of today means supporting the pilots, doctors and electricians of tomorrow.

If ten organizations could donate $500 to $1,000 to the foundation on a regular basis for five years, they said, the foundation would be able to expand the volunteer coordinator’s hours and schools served. By the end of that period, the district might be able to fit the position in its budget, Shelton and Rupp said they hope.

Melissa Fields, who works as the volunteer coordinator, could not be reached by press time.

Ackerman invites community members to make a donation for the volunteer coordinator position at swsfoundation.org/donations/, selecting the “Volunteer Coordinator Position” option in the “use this donation for” dropbox. People who are planning their wills may also choose to make a gift to the South Whidbey Schools Foundation, she said.

Prospective volunteers can also reach out to Melissa Fields by emailing volunteer-coord@sw.wednet.edu.

Note: This story was edited to clarify that the volunteer coordinator has been funded for 2.5 years and that the position also serves the middle school. We apologize for the error.

(Photo provided) With a grant from the South Whidbey Schools’ Foundation, South Whidbey fifth graders traveled to the Seattle Children’s Theater to see “The Snow Queen.”

(Photo provided) With support from the South Whidbey Schools Foundation, Lori O’Brien’s students visited the Seattle Zoo last year.