Pencil Foundation

LINK COMMUNITY RESOURCES TO METRO PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS TO HELP THEM SUCCEED & PREPARE FOR LIFE

PENCIL PARTNERS ARE BUSINESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS COMMITTED TO STUDENT SUCCESS THROUGH ORGANIZED, COORDINATED ACTIVITIES THAT MATCH THE UNIQUE ATTRIBUTES OF EACH PARTNER WITH THE SPECIFIC NEEDS OF EACH SCHOOL OR ACADEMY. BY LEVERAGING OUR WIDE NETWORK OF BUSINESS CONTACTS AND COMPREHENSIVE KNOWLEDGE OF NASHVILLE SCHOOLS, PENCIL CONNECTS BUSINESSES AND SCHOOLS IN CUSTOMIZED, MEANINGFUL WAYS THAT DIRECTLY HELP METRO STUDENTS ACHIEVE SUCCESS IN SCHOOL AND IN LIFE. WE MANAGE THESE RELATIONSHIPS BY FACILITATING COMMUNICATION, PROVIDING ACTIVITY IDEAS, SUPPORTING VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT, AND HELPING THE SCHOOL AND PARTNER DEVELOP A YEAR-LONG ACTION PLAN. IN ADDITION, PENCIL HOSTS THE PENCILMEIN615.ORG WEBSITE WHERE SCHOOLS, PARTNERS, AND INDIVIDUALS LOG THEIR VOLUNTEER HOURS AND IN-KIND GIFTS. IN FY22 WE EXPANDED PENCIL CONNECT, AN ONLINE PLATFORM WHERE COMMUNITY MEMBERS CAN REGISTER FOR SCHOOL-BASED SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES THAT CELEBRATE STUDENTS, DEMONSTRATE APPRECIATION FOR TEACHERS, AND ENGAGE FAMILIES, AS WELL AS CONNECT INDUSTRY EXPERTS TO STUDENTS FOR CAREER EXPLORATION EXPERIENCES

THE DG PENCIL BOX EXISTS TO REMOVE BARRIERS TO LEARNING FOR METRO STUDENTS BY ENSURING CLASSROOMS ARE STOCKED WITH NECESSARY SUPPLIES - AND SO TEACHERS DON'T HAVE TO SPEND THEIR OWN MONEY TO PURCHASE THESE SUPPLIES. IN FY22, WE BROADENED ACCESSIBILITY TO CORE SCHOOL SUPPLIES FOR MNPS TEACHERS BY OPENING A SECOND, SATELLITE LOCATION OF OUR DG PENCIL BOX IN ANTIOCH. BETWEEN OUR TWO SITES, THE DG PENCIL BOX LOGGED 2,900 UNIQUE SHOPPING VISITS AND GAVE AWAY OVER $1.4M IN PRODUCT TO IN-PERSON SHOPPERS. ADDITIONALLY, WE DISTRIBUTED $1.55M OF PRODUCT VIA DELIVERIES, POP-UPS, AND OTHER DISTRIBUTIONS MAKING THE 2021-22 SCHOOL YEAR OUR LARGEST EVER AT $2.95M, UP $400K OVER THE PREVIOUS YEAR. THROUGH OUR SUMMER TOGETHER 4 TEACHERS PROJECT, WE CELEBRATED NEARLY 5,000 METRO TEACHERS AND ENSURED THEY RECEIVED BAGS OF HIGHLY REQUESTED ESSENTIAL EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS. WE ALSO SUPPORTED MNPS AS THEY HOSTED A TEACHER PEP RALLY WITH AT LEAST 1,000 EDUCATORS BEFORE CLASSES BEGAN

PENCIL SLOWLY ENTERED THE WORK OF BEING A GRANTMAKING PARTNER TO MNPS BY PASSING-THROUGH $1.67M IN FUNDS TO SUPPORT THE ACCELERATING SCHOLARS INITIATIVE AND ITS FOCUS ON HIGH-IMPACT TUTORING. OUR GRANTMAKING PARTNERSHIP WORK WILL CONTINUE TO GROW AND EVOLVE IN THE FUTURE AS WE SUPPORT THE STRATEGIC PLAN OF MNPS BY RECRUITING FINANCIAL RESOURCES TO SUPPORT KEY INITIATIVES.

PENCIL'S FOUR SCHOOL-BASED FAMILY RESOURCE CENTERS (FRCS) FOCUSED ON HELPING VULNERABLE STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES ACCESS BASIC RESOURCES AND SERVICES SUCH AS GED AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE CLASSES, COUNSELING, EYE EXAMS, AND MORE WITH THE HELP OF PENCIL PARTNERS. THE PENCIL TEAM WORKED CLOSELY WITH MNPS LEADERS AS WE SMOOTHLY TRANSITIONED OPERATION OF OUR FOUR FRCS TO FAMILY AND CHILDREN SERVICES IN JUNE OF 2022.