LivingTree Announces First Round of Drako Grant Recipients

AUSTIN, Texas, May 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- LivingTree today announced that it has awarded $250,000 in first round Drako Community and Family Engagement Grants for Schools to districts and campuses throughout the United States. A diverse set of PK-12 school communities representing 11 different states and varying socio-economic needs were awarded the first round Drako Grants. The grants provide a private, secure LivingTree Tiered Social Network^® — including all engagement features, SIS integration, setup, upkeep, training, and support — at no cost for one year.

The first round awards represent 25% of the Drako Grant total set at $1 Million as announced in April 2017. Due to the strength and volume of applications, awards are being made in rounds. Early grant recipients have the opportunity to immediately begin implementation planning towards goals shared on their applications.

"It's a true honor to help schools create family and community partnerships that will positively impact student achievement," said Dean Drako, grant benefactor and LivingTree Chairman. "The variety of the schools that have applied demonstrates that family engagement is a universal objective regardless of the location, environment, or grade level."

LivingTree is excited to share the first round recipients.

First Round Grant Award Recipients

• St. Lucie Public Schools - Fort Pierce, FL
• Union County Public Schools - Monroe, NC
• Coppell ISD - Coppell, TX
• Alexander City Schools - Alexander, AL
• Crockett County C.C.S.D. - Ozona, TX
• Southwest ISD - San Antonio, TX
• Jacksonville City Schools - Jacksonville, AL
• Edward Bleeker JHS 185 - Flushing, NY
• Firelands Montessori Academy - Huron, OH
• New Caney ISD - New Caney, TX
• Holy Name Central Catholic Jr/Sr High School - Worcester, MA
• Newberry Academy - Newberry, SC
• South Clearfield Elementary School - Clearfield, UT
• St Martin High School - St. Martin, MS
• Sweetwater Elementary - Douglasville, GA
• Waiahole Elementary School - Kaneohe, HI

"We're thrilled to partner with a group of school leaders devoted to building trust and achievement within their communities," said Joni Carswell, CEO of LivingTree. "Many applicants shared their desire to consolidate engagement efforts into a single platform and reach all families using translation and mobile. The LivingTree team is ready and enthusiastic to help these schools realize their vision."

To learn more and apply for the grant, please visit: Drako Family Engagement Grant.

Initial Award Recipients Share Engagement Goals

St. Lucie Public Schools -

Kimberly Roberts, Program Manager:

"Living Tree will help us improve communication between the school and families by sharing options and ideas. Living Tree will provide support and ideas that will engage family and community members. The professional development LivingTree offers will help us improve our relationships between the school and families which in turn will help us build a stronger overall community to support our young in their education. Schools need to build bridges with our families and community that will last. We will engage families - not just involve them for today."

Waiahole Elementary School

Alexandra Obra, Principal:

"We will communicate with families on a daily basis! Next school year, our focus is on the relationship between the school and home. We want to engage our families in their child's learning. We would like to have all of our information in one spot so that families don't have to look all over the place. We also want to make sure that our families have access to the information and can see what their child's day looks like, as well as highlight what is taking place on our campus."

Crockett County C.C.S.D

Janina Savala, Federal Programs:

"Living Tree will offer the two-way communication for all students in our district. Currently, most of our communication is one-way through the use of newsletters and notes that are sent home on a weekly basis. Having two-way communication will impact our school community positively by encouraging the parent to ask the teacher questions about concerns. Creating a platform where parents can talk to each other and to school staff and resolve differences early on will be a great benefit."

Union County Public Schools

Tahira Stalberte, Chief Communications Officer:

"Living Tree has several features that will be extremely beneficial to UCPS and its families. We will use it provide ongoing communication with families, invite feedback and open doors for engaging with families in a non-traditional setting. LivingTree will provide a new and organized platform that can increase parent involvement in UCPS."

Southwest ISD

Marie Cathryn Phelps, Student & Outreach Services:

"It is our sincere belief that families want to be connected to their children's school community just as much as we want to be connected to them. We will utilize LivingTree as a district community...I literally picture a tree as a symbol of the district, strong and steadfast, reaching out to provide support, shade, or fruit to its stakeholders, and in this process, we will build and grow relationships where we will be connected and intertwined as we educate and grow our students. I believe that LivingTree will be a very powerful tool as we develop and grow a district wide family and community engagement initiative, that..can be a sustainable part of the community for generations to come."

About the Drako Community and Family Engagement Grant

The Drako Community and Family Engagement Grant for Schools awards schools and districts with a private, secure LivingTree Tiered Social Network^® — including all engagement features, SIS integration, setup, upkeep, training, and support — at no cost for one year.

School grant recipients are those with a stated plan and need for using technology to engage families and communities. Eligible schools include accredited private and public schools in the United States: pre-schools, elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools.

To learn more and apply for the grant, please visit: Drako Family Engagement Grant.

About LivingTree

Founded in 2012, LivingTree's mission is to connect the people who raise, develop, and educate our children. LivingTree aims to include every member of the community regardless of preferred language or socio-economic status. LivingTree's Tiered Social Network® empowers leaders, organizations, educators and parents to connect, share, and coordinate up, down and across all levels of their private network to help improve academic achievement. LivingTree has been recognized for this work by the Stevie® Awards for Women in Business as the 2016 Gold Community Involvement Program of the Year and 2016 Silver Smartphone App of the Year.  For more information, visit http://www.livingtree.com, call 844.LIV.TREE, or email at: [email protected]

Media contact: Jennifer Meza, 512-644-8374, [email protected]

SOURCE LivingTree