Orem Elementary wins $100,000 grant!

It has been said that when one door closes, another one opens. Well, in the case of Orem Elementary, when one opportunity fell short, something better came along and blew all the doors off!

For the months of November and December, passionate parents from Orem Elementary were working diligently to win a grant funded by Clorox for $50,000 for a new computer lab. Weeks of canvassing schools and community events asking for text votes toward their cause, they quickly raised in the polls to number 5, out of almost a thousand schools around the country competing for the grant. They did not make it to first place by the deadline. A lot of hard work seemed for not.

But during the push, one of the moms, Shari Warnick came upon the announcement on the Ellen DeGeneres Show Website, announcing that Ellen and Target were partnering to give away $5 million dollars—50 grants of $100,000 each—to deserving schools. So the same group of passionate parents began to turn their attention to this new cause. Many answered the request and responded to “in 2,500 word or less, tell us why you think your school deserves this grant”.

Orem Elementary missed the requirement to receive Title I funding by a small percentage. This means they do not receive government grant money to buy necessities such as a much needed computer lab. When concerned parents understood the plight, they took matters into their own hands. And in the end, the handful of parents, including two sisters, Shari and Julie, lead a charge that hundreds of people added their energy and support to bring results…even in a different form than intended, but for double the reward. When all was reviewed, the Target representative admits that Julie Hale’s comments had the impact on the committee that awarded them the grant.

Monday morning, the excitement was buzzing at Orem Elementary. In an assembly held for the school and community, a team from Target presented Principal Rachelle Bolingbroke with a check for $100,000. Following the presentation, the gym was filled with confetti, balloons, and music played by the Iron Horse Band as the students, staff, and community celebrated.

Orem Elementary will use the money for a new computer lab and have money left over to bring other technology upgrades to their school. Congratulations to Orem Elementary!