Craven County Partners in Education (PIE)

 

 

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Craven County Partners In Education Announces

Plans for the PIE Annual Luncheon

 

VIRTUAL EVENT:

 

The link to order lunch for our Craven County Schools Employees “Virtual Event – Lunch In-Place” will be available soon. 

Check back with us!

Orders must be placed in advance, by Thursday, May 27, 2021, by 5:00 pm, for pickup on Friday, May 28.

 

IN-PERSON EVENT:

Tickets will be available soon – contact Darlene Brown at 252-514-6321 or

Darlene.Brown@Cravenk12.org to be placed on a waiting list. 

A limited number of tickets will be available as determined by state Covid restriction capacity,

with priority given to PIE Grant recipients. 

Mike McCoy, President of Partners In Education announced that the PIE Annual Luncheon will be held both in-person and virtually.  Because of our generous sponsors, PIE can make the Virtual Luncheon a free “lunch in place” event.  He asked the community “to join us for the Virtual Luncheon Event to show their support of our public-school educators and administrators through a link on PIE’s social media sites and PIE’s website on Friday, May 28th at noon. If you cannot join us at that time, the video link will remain available on PIE’s website.”

The In-Person Luncheon Event will be held Thursday, May 27^th at noon (doors open at 11:30 am) at the Havelock Tourist & Event Center, $30/per person. The event will be catered by Chef “Smoke” Boyd and his crew at The Flame.  The Havelock High Jazz Band, led by band director Jorge Benitez, will be our featured entertainment.  Centerpieces will be provided by Mitchell Hardware in coordination with the art department at Tucker Creek Middle School.  A limited number of tickets will be available as determined by state Covid restriction capacity, with priority given to PIE Grant recipients.

Mr. McCoy said he is pleased to announce that PIE has partnered with Morgan’s and The Chelsea to offer a “lunch in-place” opportunity for the Virtual Luncheon Event.  Craven County Schools employees can order a limited number of lunches from a pre-set menu in advance from Morgan’s and The Chelsea for $11, all-inclusive.  Orders must be placed in advance, by Thursday, May 27, 2021, by 5:00 pm, through an online ordering system from a link on the PIE website for pickup on Friday, May 28.

Christy Hazlett, Assistant Principal at H.J. MacDonald Middle, and Program Chair of the PIE board explains, “This event helps to fund PIE Grants, grants that are awarded to teachers for creative and innovative projects in Craven County Schools classrooms and to fund materials for technology, science, music, and art projects, along with supplies and books for our students.  The PIE Annual Luncheon supports and recognizes teachers who won PIE Grants during the 2020-21 school year. We are so pleased that PIE was able to award over $300,000 to Craven County Schools through a variety of grants and programs during the 2020-21 school year.”

Brandy Popp, Chair of the Fund-Raising committee said she is thrilled to announce the keynote speaker, 2021 National Superintendent of the Year Finalist, Dr. Bryan Johnson.  Ms. Popp explained, “The theme is ‘Relate – Achieve – Believe – Who Tells Your Story?’ Relate – Achieve – Believe is Dr. Johnson’s mantra.  John Bircher will be the emcee for the event.”

Dr. Johnson, a native of Nashville and a proud product of public schools, has dedicated his career to public education, serving as a teacher, school administrator, director of secondary schools, chief academic officer, and now as the Superintendent of Schools in Hamilton County Schools, Tennessee. He holds degrees from Austin Peay State University, Belmont University, and Trevecca University, where he earned his doctorate in educational leadership. 

During Dr. Johnson’s tenure, Hamilton County Schools have shown historic levels of improvement. In the last three years, the district moved from 130th to 2nd in the state for student academic growth, making Hamilton County Schools the fastest improving school district in Tennessee. Some of the academic improvements include, increasing the number of Reward Schools (the state’s highest distinction) from 5 to 32, increasing scholarship dollars earned from $20 million to more than $100 million, increases in achievement for high school assessed subjects by 7% or more, and an increase of 4.5% in the number of Black, Hispanic, and Native American students scoring proficient on state assessments. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Johnson worked with community leaders and the school board to launch a 10-year commitment to providing high-speed internet to all 28,500 economically disadvantaged students in Hamilton County for free to close the digital divide. Dr. Johnson has received numerous accolades for his leadership, including being named 2021 Tennessee Superintendent of the Year and 2020 EdWeek Leader To Learn From. He was listed as a Superintendent to Watch by the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA), Outstanding Young Alumnus at Austin Peay, and Humanitarian of the Year for Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Southeastern Region.  

Mr. McCoy thanked the partners of the PIE Annual Luncheon:  AlphaGraphics, BB&T, Bojangles’, B/S/H/ Home Appliances, CarolinaEast Health System, Century 21 Zaytoun-Raines, Coastal Carolina Health Care, Craven Community College, Craven County Schools, Craven County Wood Energy, Edward Jones Investments Financial Advisors: Dan M Roberts IV, Michael Sprague, Michael Bass, Mitch Meminger, Joanna Carr, Charles Benson III, and Kevin Page, First Citizens Bank, Hearne’s Fine Jewelry, International Paper, Marine Federal Credit Union, Mitchell Hardware, Moen, Morgan’s Tavern & Grill, Neuse River Region Association of REALTORS, Inc., Piedmont Natural Gas, Pierce Group Benefits, Rotary Club of New Bern, Smithfield Foods, Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q, Suddenlink, Sumrell Sugg – Attorneys at Law, Sun Journal, Toyota of New Bern, Trent Cadillac Buick GMC, Weyerhaeuser, White & Allen, Williams-Scarborough-Gray, WITN-TV, and WRNS 95.1 & WERO Bob 93.3 and Supporting Sponsors: John Bircher – Davis Hartman Wright, Craven County Independent Insurance Agents, Duke Energy, Fisher Fuel Markets, The Insurance Center, MBF Architects, and McClay Custom Homes.

To learn more about PIE programs, and how to be part of the PIE Annual Luncheon Events, contact Darlene Brown, Executive Director, Craven County Partners In Education, at 514-6321.

 

 

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PIE Partnership/Sponsorship

 

Fill out the fillable pdf on the last page of the packet (follow this link to download the Partnership Packet), return it to Darlene Brown, and your partnership with Partners In Education is complete for the year!  

 

You can pay online – go to the Donate Online section of the website for our secure online payment system!

 

PIE is pleased to offer a unique program, “Planned Partnership,” at the beginning of the calendar year to help you budget your community support funds. Your partnership will help fund PIE Grants and other programs offered by PIE to our Craven County Schools teachers.  Partner with us by supporting our events!

• 2021 Spring Luncheon:  Thursday, May 27, Noon to 1:30 pm – Havelock Tourist & Event Center. We have an extraordinary speaker planned for this year!  ($1,000, $700, and $500 sponsorships) 
• Stuff the Bus:  August 14, 2021 – Staples New Bern ($700 sponsorship)
• Pancakes for PIE: December 4, 2021 – Morgan’s Tavern & Grill ($600 sponsorship) 

OR 

Partners In Education Major Partnership:   $1,700

Sponsor all our events at the Major Partnership levels (a value of $2,300) PLUS have your company’s logo featured on the PIE website, along with a link to your company’s website through December 2021, for just $1,700!   

Fill out the fillable pdf on the last page of the packet (follow this link to download the Partnership Packet), return it to Darlene Brown, and your partnership with Partners In Education is complete for the year!  

Join us in supporting our local public school system, Craven County Schools!

We truly appreciate your support and look forward to working with you in 2021!  If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact Darlene at 514-6321 or at Darlene.Brown@cravenk12.org.

All our best,

Michael McCoy, President, Craven County Partners In Education

 

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PIE Good Story: Pancakes for PIE

 

Morgan’s Tavern & Grill

Flips Out for

Pancakes for PIE to Benefit Partners In Education

Follow this link to visit our Facebook page to see photos of this event!

 

On behalf of the board of directors of Craven County Partners In Education, thank you to everyone who attended our “Pancakes for PIE” event at Morgan’s on Saturday, December 5!

Through the generosity of Candice and Adam Simmons and their staff, we served over 500 delicious pancake breakfasts (which included generous portions of pancakes, sausage, bacon, fruit, orange juice, and coffee) with a total of $16,500 donated to PIE through ticket sales and sponsorships. 

Mike McCoy, PIE Board President explains, “This event is an excellent opportunity for our community to show their support for Craven County Schools.  Morgan’s generously donated all proceeds from the breakfast to PIE, who will use the funds to support our local schools through PIE grant programs.  The Morgan’s staff gave up their Saturday morning, along with PIE volunteers consisting of teachers, school staff members, and community supporters.”

Everyone stepped up and did whatever it took to make this event work, and have fun while doing it!  There was one point where we were so busy, it took the synergy of everyone working together to take the money, clean the tables, organize getting people seated, and serve the pancake plates.  Then what did we do? Repeat above!  It is when everyone comes together that a high energy event like this is amazingly successful!  

Brandy Popp, Chair of the PIE Fund Raising Committee explains, “It is so very giving of Adam and Candice Simmons and their employees to provide the staffing, food, and venue for this event. We all know Morgan’s dishes up excellent food and our volunteers are always up for serving some ‘PIE’!  We are absolutely thrilled Morgan’s hosted Pancakes for PIE and so many people came to start their day with us and then spend it in beautiful downtown New Bern!”

Darlene Brown, executive director of PIE, said, “Thank you to everyone who made this event a tremendous success:  All of the businesses who so generously sponsored this event and displayed our posters in their place of business and all of the people who liked and shared our event on social media.  Also, thank you to our media partners, Sun Journal, Bob 93.3, WRNS 95.1, WITN-TV, and New Bern Post for continuing to demonstrate their commitment to Partners In Education by playing a critical role in helping us get the word out through their in-kind partnership! And, of course, everyone who came out to eat delicious pancakes in support of PIE!”

Our volunteers and the staff at Morgan’s gave up their Saturday morning during the busy holiday season and made this event exceptional because together, we are partners!

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Partners In Education is a 501(c)3 nonprofit Local Education Foundation that provides grant funding and special programs to classrooms and schools within the Craven County Schools system. 

Since 1988, PIE has been changing the lives of students and families in our community by providing our educators with financial resources that enhance and reward innovative approaches to educational excellence.

For more information about Pancakes for PIE, or other programs offered by PIE, contact Darlene Brown, Executive Director, Craven County Partners In Education, at 514-6321 or CravenPartners.com.

 

 

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This year, because of Covid-19, we are encouraging our supporters to donate thru the PIE website.

A school supply list is available by following this link or you can visit individual school websites for their lists.

Stuff the Bus Declared a Success!

On August 15th, Craven County Partners In Education and Staples of New Bern joined together to give local students and teachers more than 7,000 items worth over $15,000 ahead of the school year. With donations still coming in from Publix and private donors, totaling over $25,000!  In its 10th year, the annual PIE Stuff the Bus event works to provide students with supplies that are essential to starting the school year.

This year, PIE and Staples partnered ahead of the academic year that will begin remotely due to the coronavirus pandemic. Mike McCoy, PIE president said, “With teaching shifting to online, it’s more important than ever to help our students with the supplies they will need. Anything we can supply them with, any tool we can give them to make it easier, we’re happy to do.”

The idea for Stuff the Bus started with a desire to help students in the local community. “We determined that we could help hundreds of students with school supplies because their families just didn’t have the money to purchase supplies for their children,” said Dr. Ervin Patrick, PIE past president. “We also want to give a special shout out to Target for donating several laptops and other electronics, along with over 100 tote bags full of school supplies.”

Craven County Schools teachers and administrators wore masks, brightly colored Stuff the Bus volunteer and school shirts, and accepted supplies in front of Staples on Dr. MLK, Jr. Blvd., in New Bern from advance drop off location such as Staples, Target, Century 21 Zaytoun Raines, Christ Church, Edward Jones – Dan Roberts, Rankin & Fiume Orthodontics, and Toyota of New Bern. Many Staples customers and people who had heard about the event in advance, also dropped off supplies. WRNS, Bob 93.3, and deputies representing the Sheriff’s department helped with accepting supplies and greeted and thanked donors. Kids hopped on board a Craven County Schools bus and honked the horn as they made their donations!

Items were scanned by the volunteers into an inventory system written by Wayne Beasley in cooperation with Craven County Schools’ tech department for accurate record keeping.

The mission of Stuff the Bus is to serve as many children as possible who have been identified as in-need by their school’s counselor and principal with the needed school supplies they require to succeed in school. These school supplies will give our students the tools they need to help keep them on the road to learning. All donations make a difference.

An investment in Partners In Education is an investment in our workforce, our community, and our future. Together, we are partners.

Partners In Education

Craven County Partners In Education provides grant funding and special programs to classrooms and schools within the Craven County Schools system. It is a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Corporation, Tax ID #56-1335975 and donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law. Financial information about this organization and a copy of its license are available from the State Solicitation Licensing Branch at 919-814-5400. The license is not an endorsement by the State.

 

 

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PIE Good Story: Disaster Relief Donations

 

Support Craven County Schools through PIE’s Disaster Relief Program

Donate online by following this link.

In the Fall of 2019, Hurricane Florence ripped through portions of Eastern North Carolina, dumping historic rainfall on Craven County.  Thousands of homes were flooded.

During the Spring of 2020, Covid-19 forced our schools to close for the year, and teachers and students had to swiftly switch gears to online and remote learning.

There has been an outpouring of school supplies (can you ever really have enough?!), cleaning/sanitizing supplies, and personal care items. What we need now are gift cards for our teachers and schools to help them rebuild. Classrooms have to be rebuilt and remote learning deployed. We ask you to help us provide our students with a safe and inviting learning environment. You can send or drop off gift certificates at Partners In Education, 3600 Trent Rd, New Bern, NC 28562. Target, Walmart, Amazon, and Staples are the most practical. Please give in whatever denominations you are able.

A school supply list is available by following this link or you can visit individual school websites for their lists.

You can also donate money online by following this link.  If you would like your donation to be dedicated to a certain school, please indicate that in the comments section when you donate online.

For more information on how you can support PIE and our Craven County Schools, contact Darlene Brown at 514-6321, or at Darlene.Brown@CravenK12.org.

Partners In Education is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that provides grant funding and special programs to classrooms and schools within the Craven County Schools system.

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Shopping Amazon?

Be sure and enter Craven County Partners In Education as your AmazonSmile charitable organization! Amazon donates .5% of purchases to PIE.

#SupportPIE #TogetherWeArePartners

https://smile.amazon.com/ch/56-1335975

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For more information about Partners In Education, our programs and grants, or how you can donate, call Darlene Brown, Executive Director of Craven County Partners In Education at (252) 514-6321 or email us at Darlene.Brown@cravenk12.org.

By working together we can all make a difference in education in Craven County Schools.

Craven County Partners In Education is a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Corporation, Tax ID #56-1335975, and donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.  Financial information about this organization and a copy of its license are available from the State Solicitation Licensing Branch at 919-814-5400.  The license is not an endorsement by the State.