On Sunday, November 22, I watched 60 Minutes. They covered a story about an NIH-funded research study called “90+.” The University of California Irvine is trying to learn all it can from a group of men and women who are older than 90 years. This story reminded me of the good in humanity and gave me hope. And the story that followed, was far less positive, actually quite concerning. It’s about how school districts in Florida have seen unprecedented drops in enrollment since the COVID-19 pandemic started — 7,000 students are missing from Florida classrooms. Seven THOUSAND missing. They have not logged on or gone to school since in-person classrooms closed earlier this year. Many of the students missing are 6 and 7 years old. One young lady they profiled was a high school senior. Some of the students were living in motels – homeless shelters are at capacity in many places. Some were able to receive the help they needed to get “back to school” – primarily through devices to attend virtually. Several were living with a relative who could not manage to get them on-line or to school.
Baltimore schools are also facing a larger-than-ever truancy rate. What we know today is that 275 low-income students are in school, either virtually or in-person at over 40 schools in our area. They are CSFB scholars and for $5.47 a day, you can make sure they have the funding to stay there.
We call our $2,000 donors Scholar Donors. This amount of money is all it takes to bridge the gap between financial aid, the contributions our families are required to make, and the cost of tuition. And $5.47 represents the amount you would need to donate each day to support a student for a full school year. This year, I decided I could come up with that amount. Other donors have recently decided that as well.
A note from a donor accompanied their donation for $2,000 this year.
“During this difficult time, Rick and I have fared better than many, and are so fortunate to be able to increase the amount of our annual donation…and we are honored to be able to pair our good fortune with your meaningful efforts.”
Please support our efforts at an amount you can “spare.” Consider a monthly debit or a year-end contribution at an amount that is meaningful to you. $5.47 means a lot to many.
Beth Harbinson
CSFB continues to have a positive impact in Baltimore by providing kindergarten-8th grade scholarships to low-income families without regard to gender, race, grades or test scores, ethnicity or religious belief.