LPOSD volunteer program announced

SANDPOINT — Thanks to funding from the Equinox Foundation’s grant program, a professionally-managed volunteer program will be created in the Lake Pend Oreille School District.

The Equinox Foundation Grant Program is a new Sandpoint-based grant-making organization, managed by the Inland Northwest Community Foundation. This award is one of several from the foundation’s initial round of grants.

“The benefits of this program are far reaching,” LPOSD Superintendent Dick Cvitanich said. “The addition of a professional volunteer coordinator to the Lake Pend Oreille School District staff will not only support our schools during unprecedented budget cuts, but is an opportunity to educate the public about the value of volunteering to promote a healthier community.”

The new program, Volunteers & Invested Parents, is  is the brainchild of a strategic planning team made up of school district administrators, principals, teachers and board members of the Panhandle Alliance for Education, PAFE president Wendy Dunn said.

The program is designed to support and expand the community’s involvement in public education.

Its goals include support of classroom teachers, increased parent involvement in public education and expansion of volunteering to students, senior citizens, service clubs and businesses. The program also will work to increase communication between the Lake Pend Oreille School District and the community, Dunn said.

“VIP will foster a connection between youth and their community and between the community and their schools,” she added.

In addition to parents, Dunn said parent teacher organizations and a variety of community service organizations will be called upon to participate as volunteers. As volunteer needs are identified, organizations will be tapped based on their membership talents, she added.

In addition to collaboration with local organizations, the volunteer coordinator will fill several other roles. Dunn said they will include creation of a system to recruit, train, and supervise volunteers as well as communicate public understanding of school district needs and network in the community

Dunn said a growing body of research confirms that regardless of the economic, racial, or cultural background of the family, when parents are partners in their children’s education, the results are improved student achievement, better school attendance, reduced dropout rates, and decreased delinquency.

Information on the new position of volunteer coordinator, including job description, can be found on the Lake Pend Oreille School District job posting website: www.lposd.org; at the Department of Labor, Sandpoint, or you may contact Lee Stevens at the Lake Pend Oreille School District,  263-2184 ext. 1014.

PAFE is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting excellence in education and broad-based community support for the Lake Pend Oreille School District.

Information: online, www.panhandlealliance.com; or phone, Marcia Wilson, 263-7040