11/09/2005

South Dakota schools raise funds for Katrina relief

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota schools raised $24,061.45 through the Department of Education’s Kids for Katrina Relief fund-raising initiative. The money will go to Louisiana schools most impacted by the storm.

“Immediately following Katrina, we were getting calls from schools wanting to help the teachers and students in Louisiana and Mississippi,” said Dr. Rick Melmer, secretary of the South Dakota Department of Education. “After talking with our counterparts in the affected areas, we created Kids for Katrina Relief, so that our schools could be certain their dollars would go directly to Louisiana’s schools, teachers and students.”

The money raised through Kids for Katrina Relief will go to a fund set up by Louisiana’s Superintendent of Education Cecil J. Picard. The fund matches monetary donations with the needs of school systems affected by the storm.

Launched in mid-September, Kids for Katrina Relief ran throughout October. Participating schools used a variety of activities, ranging from bake sales to penny drives, to raise funds.

Participating schools/districts and organizations (as of Nov. 7) included the following:

Bison Elementary School Castlewood Ministerial Association and School District Central High School, Aberdeen DeSmet School District Geddes School District Hill City School District Hitchcock-Tulare Elementary School Hot Springs School District Hoven Elementary School Hurley School District Lead-Deadwood Lead-Deadwood Elementary School Lead-Deadwood Middle and High Schools Madison Madison Elementary Schools (Lincoln and Washington) Madison Middle School Meade School District Mitchell G.B. Rogers Elementary School L.B. Williams Elementary School Longfellow Elementary School Mitchell Middle School Mt. Vernon High School (Student Council) Rapid City Grandview Elementary School Pinedale Elementary School Southwest Middle School Sanborn Central School District Sioux Valley School District (FCCLA Chapter) Wagner School District Webster School District

In addition to the schools listed above, a number of schools ran their own fund-raising efforts and sent the dollars to a charitable organization or directly to a particular school.

“We want to congratulate all of the schools out there that raised funds or collected supplies for the schools affected by Katrina and Rita,” Melmer said. “We know that there were many efforts, beyond our initiative, going on. All of these students and teachers should be extremely proud of their efforts.