The Greater Parkcrest Neighborhood Association, relatively new among the current collection of 16 organized associations in the city, has made a priority of helping out the neighborhood school, Horace Mann Elementary.
“We’re very grateful,” said Brittany Payne, the new principal this year at Horace Mann.
Not only has the assistance helped the school materially, she said, it boosts the morale of students, faculty and staff.
“You can’t count dollars on making someone smile,” Payne said.
Also active leaders on hand at a discussion with principal Payne one recent day were executive committee members Muriel Reed, who worked for the Parents as Teachers program, and Evelyn Hutsell, who has taught Sunday school at her church.
Horace Mann, which currently serves more than 400 students, has a teaching staff of 30 and 15 support employees. There is a lot of family mobility in the district, with students coming and going, which produces additional challenges, said Payne, who also lives in the Parkcrest neighborhood.
The Parkcrest association formed in April 2015 and leaders approached Payne last year to see how they could help the school. They were well aware that schools have more needs than public budgets can provide,
And besides, Wyrick said, it is important because the school “has our future.”
The association came up with some school supplies, and with student bicycling safety in mind, McCarthy was able to get 25 bicycle helmets through a CoxHealth program. She is especially versed in the elementary school and its needs because her children went to Horace Mann, and she taught 25 years in the Springfield school system.
With the help of the association, the school staged its first parade and fall festival last autumn, a highlight of the school year so far.
It also promotes the collection and use of the Boxtops program, and the school children are involved in deciding how the money raised from the competitive fund-raising will be spent.
Payne is good at fund-raising, Muriel Reed said.
“We appreciate Brittany’s enthusiasm for all this,” McCarthy said.
Payne also credits the students for their part in the collaboration. “Kids are the favorite part of the job, and their attitude spills over onto the staff.”