Dobbs Ferry Schools Foundation

Happy Friday! Our Annual Appeal is happening right now. Funds raised through our Annual Appeal fund the faculty- and administration-led grant proposals across all three schools in our District that are submitted throughout our yearly grants cycles. This year alone we have funded three critical grants including funding for a district-wide School Safety and Mental Health Crisis Intervention training for staff and community members which will impact students in grades K-12. Wi...th your help we can continue to help all Dobbs Ferry students reach their full potential! Please visit our website to learn more and to make a tax-deductible donation. Thanks to all our donors, since 1994 we've awarded hundreds of grants totaling more than $4 million. This funding has helped to accelerate innovation, inspire new thinking, awaken passions, and enhance education across all three schools in our district. https://www.dfsfoundation.org/donate

Today is Giving Tuesday, an annual day of giving when non-profit organizations ask us to take a pause and direct some of our dollars to worthy causes. In this unusual year we know there are so many causes that need our help. We hope you’ll consider a gift to the DFSF where our only goal is to provide financial resources that enhance the educational environment throughout the Dobbs Ferry Schools, enabling the District to provide opportunities to students that are not possible... using District budget funds alone. With budgets and funding being slashed today more than ever, our schools need our help and no amount is too small. To make a donation please visit us here: https://www.dfsfoundation.org/donate This year alone, with your help, we funded administration training with the Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools Program; a district-wide School Safety and Mental Health Crisis Intervention training for staff and community members which will impact students in grades K-12, and; we partnered with the Dobbs Ferry PTSA to provide clear masks for every teacher in the District. You can learn more about the grants and initiatives we’ve funded over the last 27 years on our website. Thank you!! Photo credit: NPR #givingtuesday2020

Friends and Neighbors, For the last 27 years, the Dobbs Ferry Schools Foundation has worked in partnership with our community, the Board of Education, school leadership and our teachers to fund a wide array of innovative learning initiatives, equipment and creative programs that go beyond the school district’s budget in order to provide our students with the best education possible. But this year is a year like no other. School budgets have been stretched even further to ensu...re that students who are in school can be there safely, and to support those who are learning from home in a way that surely none of us ever imagined. We are asking for your help in funding critical programs that support the physical, social and emotional wellbeing of our learners. Together we can help our students and our educators navigate this new normal. Thanks to the generous support of our community, the Foundation has helped to launch the IB Program and FLES; built the Buddy Bench and donated hundreds of new library books at Springhurst; partnered to build math and science labs; brought smart boards to the classroom and brought the classroom outdoors; and continues to fund teacher-led grants across all three schools. Your donation this year, no matter how small, will allow the Foundation to be nimble and respond to the urgent needs of our students, teachers, community and staff. They need us now more than ever. Please consider making a tax-deductible gift today by visiting DFSFoundation.org/donate Every donation makes a difference and provides our students with the resources and opportunities they need to realize their full potential. Thank you for your support! Sincerely, Monica Shulman and Carly Levine Co-Presidents, Dobbs Ferry Schools Foundation

The Dobbs Ferry Schools District is asking for YOUR ADVOCACY to keep our schools open safely and in line with the mandates NY state has put in place to protect our community. [Action] Please go to the link below and in our bio, then click on the box that reads Keep School Buildings Open. Under Compose Your Message, you can use the text provided or revise it as you like. Enter your information and click on the Send Message button. It should only take a few minutes and wi...ll automatically send this important message to our representatives. **We are all in this together** #unity #inthistogether #dobbsferry #dobbsferryschooldistrict #dobbsferryschoolsfoundation

This Fall the Dobbs Ferry Schools Foundation Board voted unanimously to fund the district's critical race and equity work and administration training with NYU's Steinhardt Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools Program. From our Superintendent Dr. Lisa Brady: "Along with keeping our schools open, our race and equity work with NYU Metro Center is the primary focus of our Board of Education and District schools this year and in years ahea...d. We are extremely grateful to the Dobbs Ferry Schools Foundation for funding this important work - especially when our school resources are stretched so thin because of COVID related expenses. The Foundation has funded so many programs and initiatives over the years such as the IB Diploma Program, IB Middle Years Program, STEM initiatives, Science Research, FLES at Springhurst, Springhurst classroom libraries, Innovative Classroom Initiative and so much more!" The DFSF is proud to partner with our district to fund critical programs like this. Please visit our website to learn more about our work with the community and how to get involved. https://www.dfsfoundation.org. Tonight at 7pm the Board of Ed is having a Work Session facilitated by Natalie Zwerger, Director of the Center for Strategic Solutions and details for logging on were sent by the District earlier today. This Thursday at 7pm Natalie Zwerger will be joining the PTSA Diversity Committee's meeting to further explain the work the NYU Metro Center is doing with the District. Please check the PTSA page for Zoom details. Hope to see you there!

Happy Friday! Are you curious about who we are and what we do? We’re an all volunteer parent, tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization with one purpose: we exist to provide financial resources that enhance the educational environment throughout the Dobbs Ferry Schools, which enable the District to provide opportunities to students that are not possible using District budget funds alone. ... We work with our school admin, principals and teachers to accelerate innovation and to support strategic goals, programs, curriculum and equipment. Head over to our updated website FAQ to learn about who we are, programs we’ve funded, how you can help, and more! https://www.dfsfoundation.org/faq-1 We’re launching our Annual Appeal campaign soon so please stay tuned for more info! Thanks for your support! #DFSFoundation

Happy Election Day! Whatever the result, today is a very important day in the lives of all who call Dobbs Ferry home. No matter what, we are all in this together. The Dobbs Ferry PTSA is selling lawn signs to help spread this important message. Email [email protected] or [email protected] if you would like a sign. You can venmo Brooke-bass-2 and email your address and we will drop off the sign to your home (contactless delivery). Cash is accepted too.... Know that we are all in this together. To listen, to share, to bond, to heal, to love. Please Share with anyone who needs to hear this today! #dobbsferry #dobbsferryunity #diversity