Santa Rosa County School Board Chairwoman Linda Sanborn, during the board’s May 4 meeting, announced an innovative program she’s developing in order to help meet unmet needs of students.
The goal of the DUO (Do Unto Others) Program is to raise enough money to provide each of the district’s 38 principals with a $1,000 pre-paid credit card. “Though accountability will be required, there will be no need for purchase orders, approvals or other pre-purchase paperwork,” said Sanborn, adding, “In other words, a need can be met immediately.”
Sanborn, a retired long-time Milton High School teacher, said every day district employees see needs, ranging from clothing, like jackets, to money for school field trips or book fairs.
Dr. Karen Barber, Santa Rosa County Superintendent of Schools, says currently district staff and teachers often step in to fill these gaps, spending their own money to ensure children have necessities. “We are so fortunate to live in Santa Rosa County with such a great standard of living, yet we have so many families that struggle to make ends meet,” Barber said.
Teachers like Trendi Johnson, a kindergarten inclusion teacher at Holley-Navarre Primary, are grateful for the new program, seeing it as two-fold relief. “Not only will DUO help students but also it will assist teachers and staff, who many times quietly fulfill these unmet needs, often by making personal sacrifices.”
The DUO program will be administered through the Santa Rosa Education Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Those interested in supporting the effort may send tax-deductible donations to the Santa Rosa Education Foundation at 6032 Hwy 90, Milton, FL 32570. “DUO Program” should be written on the memo line of checks made payable to the Santa Rosa Education Foundation.
Additionally, donations for the DUO Program will be accepted online via https://givebutter.com/DUOSRC.
