JCES supports teachers with $550 VyStar grant

Submitted by
Angela Gray
Jefferson County Educational Foundation

Jefferson County Educational Foundation (JCEF), a local 501c (3) that supports the local school district, announced it has received a grant for $500 from VyStar Credit Union.
VyStar believes in doing good and leading by example, especially when it comes to supporting local education foundations and their efforts to celebrate and elevate teachers in their communities. The JCEF utilized grant funds to provide breakfast donuts and a personal pan pizza lunch to 85 teachers and staff at the Jefferson County School District.
Retired Principal Geraldine Wildgoose organized the activities on behalf of the JCEF. “Everyone in the community is elated to welcome teachers from far and near back to our campus.” Just having the school district restored to local control for a little over 30 days, these individuals have been working hard and deserve some recognition. Wildgoose added, “A Krispy Kreme donut breakfast was provided their second day back on campus, and on Open House day, we provided a personal pan pizza for their lunch.”
The funding is part of a $50,000 VyStar grant to the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations (Consortium) to fund teacher appreciation and support activities by local education foundations for thousands of teachers throughout their 49-county Florida footprint.
“At VyStar Credit Union, we are proud to work alongside teachers across many Florida communities through our High School Branch Program, and we are deeply appreciative of all their hard work in support of their students,” said Patricia McElroy, SVP and President VyStar Community Foundation. “Today’s students will go on to become tomorrow’s leaders — and that’s because they have teachers who are dedicated to helping them reach their full potential. By supporting this wonderful celebration, VyStar recognizes and lifts up educators across the state and thanks them for guiding their students every day.”
For additional information on VyStar Credit Union’s community impact initiatives, visit: https://www.vystarcu.org/who-we-are/our-community. For more information on JCEF please visit jeffersoncoeducationalfoundation
.org.
About the Jefferson County Educational Foundation: Jefferson County Educational Foundation, a 501c (3) established in 2002, was created to enhance education opportunity, learning performance and employment opportunity for the children, youth and other citizens of Jefferson County, Fla. It manages the Florida Specialty License Plate Fund for Education and participates in the State of Florida dollar for dollar match funding program that provides funds for local projects that serve students, literacy initiatives, encourage STEM and career/technical education, increase classroom innovation, support teachers and/or increase graduation rates.
About the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations: The Consortium is the membership organization for Florida’s school district-wide local education foundations. Established in 1987, the Consortium connects individuals, organizations, and financial resources to build the capacity and effectiveness of Florida’s local education foundations. Together, Consortium members raise more than $86 million annually for a variety of locally driven initiatives and are led by 1,200 board members, 80 percent of whom are local business and community leaders working in partnership with school district leaders. The Consortium manages the nation’s only 1:1 legislative match for education foundation initiatives and a variety of privately funded grant programs. To learn more about the Consortium or connect with any member local education foundation, visit https:// educationfoundationsfl.org
About VyStar Credit Union: VyStar Credit Union is the second-largest credit union headquartered in Florida and now serves over 800,000 members with assets of over $12 billion. VyStar is the largest mortgage lender in Northeast Florida and a major employer in the region with over 2,000 employees. VyStar membership is open to everyone who lives or works in the 49 contiguous counties of Central to North Florida, 10 Georgia counties, and past and present military members and their families all over the world. Follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.