Pepin Academies Foundation has commenced its second annual Adopt-a-Classroom campaign to help equip teachers and students with needed school supplies for the 2021-22 school year. Individuals and businesses are invited to participate by sponsoring or adopting a classroom, with the option to donate to one Pepin Academies campus or support all three of its Tampa Bay area campuses, which includes a location in Riverview.
Adopt-a-Classroom funds will provide teachers with needed academic enrichment materials. Teachers will have the opportunity to identify their individual classroom needs, a crucial step in granting schools the flexibility needed to adapt their teaching practices to suit the individual needs of their students.
“Our goal is to best support all our Pepin Academies’ classrooms across Tampa Bay and give teachers and students the supplies they need to maximize their potential in a positive educational environment,” said Don Orrico, director of development at Pepin Academies Foundation. “We’ve already seen the impact of last year’s generous donations, and we look forward to seeing lives continue to change in the future.”
Since launching the campaign last school year, the schools have raised $19,000 and impacted the lives of 19 teachers and 414 students. Pepin Academies also received an in-kind donation worth $110,000 of deep cleaning services for its schools.
“Last year’s Adopt-a-Classroom campaign ensured my students received the best supplies for our forensic science class,” said Tanja Diederich, a forensic science teacher at Pepin Academies. “Thanks to the generous support of our local communities and businesses, I was able to give my students state-of-the-art crime scene kits, gloves and more to help aid their excitement for learning. This was especially meaningful considering the difficulties of the past school year.”
Pepin Academies Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports all of Pepin Academies’ campuses. Pepin Academies are public, tuition-free charter schools located in Tampa, Riverview and New Port Richey that serve students with learning disabilities in grades 3-12. Qualified as exceptional student education (ESE) center schools, Pepin Academies provides a positive therapeutic environment that focuses on improving academic success and social achievement.
Adopt-a-Classroom donations can be securely made online at pepinacademiesfoundation.org.