Educational foundation seeks to serve students
BY LARRY HLAVENKA JR.
Staff Writer

Howell

HOWELL - As a new school year begins, the Howell Township Education Foundation (HTEF) will continue to strive to fund programs that might not otherwise be provided in the regular Howell K-8 school budget.

Headed by resident Anthony Novembre, the nonprofit group accepts donations that are used to fund teacher-proposed educational programs. This year the HTEF presented more than $10,000 in grants to teachers throughout the public school district for the creation of new programs.

Novembre, a lifetime New Jersey educator and former superintendent of schools in South Amboy, Middlesex County, described how the HTEF began.

"We started about a year ago with Superintendent of Schools Enid Golden to identify some programs we could fund separate from the PTO and other organizations," he said. "We started to basically enhance educational programs that Howell has. These would be programs not funded by the budget, but rather above and beyond. The district has been extremely cooperative and encouraging."

Golden recalled the initial steps as well.

"The idea for the foundation came out of the Strategic Planning Committee which consisted of parents, teachers, administrators and community members, as a source of alternative funding," she said. "[Now] the foundation provides an opportunity for teachers to develop creative and innovative projects to engage the students."

Since there had already been interest from Novembre and because the idea had been discussed by the Strategic Planning Committee, the future chairman of the foundation saw it as serendipitous.

"The timing was right," Novembre said.

After deciding to move forward, Novem-bre spoke with Golden on a weekly basis about what the foundation should encompass.

They determined that "this is a viable way to make up things that could be eliminated from the budget and to keep programs that teachers were interested in," he said.

Teachers would be given an opportunity to draft a proposal for a program they hoped to employ in the classroom. The HTEF would review the proposal and determine its value to students.

"The teachers have been thankful because, obviously, they wouldn't have gotten these programs without us," he said.

With the pieces in place, Novembre assembled a panel which includes himself, Laurence Gurman (vice chairman), Mark Ackermann, David Meth, Bernadine Borowick, Ana May Damatac, Susan Dominguez, Robert Faias, Catherine Flott, Robert Lisk, Dr. Hal Ornstein, Peter Pfister, Jacquelyn Tennant and Holli Toline; honorary members state Assemblyman Joseph R. Malone III, who is an educator, and ESPN sportscaster Bonnie Bernstein, who is a graduate of Howell's public schools; and advisers Valerie Rosenberg, a member of the Howell Board of Education, Cherylyn Salerno, communication/research officer for the Howell School District, and Golden.

"We identified community members and found a good representation of the township itself" in the panel, Novembre said.

After the panel members met to review the first group of proposals, 12 were selected for funding.

Many of the programs have a technology edge, including "iPod Read Alongs," which will enable students to listen to a reading assignment through the device while they follow along in a book; "Life Grows in Griebling," which will feature the construction of a rain forest, complete with water, plants and animals housed in a terrarium; and "Mics, Camera, Action: An iMovie Project," in which students will use software and each other's talents to create a movie.

Novembre believes this is just the beginning for the foundation. As part of an aggressive plan to aid Howell's schools, he believes the district could receive more than $100,000 in grants each year within five years.

That prospect has Golden excited.

"Having worked with the foundation's Board of Trustees, I am confident they will reach their fundraising goals," the superintendent said. "The board is made up of a truly dedicated and motivated group of individuals whose primary focus is the education of Howell's children."

Novembre and Golden also left open the possibility of fundraising events, such as a food tasting benefit.

"As we move forward, the foundation will host fundraising events, which will bring the community together, while encouraging people to get involved with the school district, learn more about our district goals and initiatives, and ultimately enhance our instructional program," Golden said.

Novembre just hopes he can continue to help.

"To me personally, it's very satisfying, rewarding," he said. "It's a way to give back to my own community that has been supportive of me. I've got kids that come up to me and thank me - that type of thing is very rewarding."