Assistance League of the Chesapeake
We are an AACPS: Community Partnership | 2019 Business Partner of the Year Nominee
Recognized for their support of AACPS by the Office of School & Family Partnerships
To say Assistance League® of the Chesapeake, Inc. has been a help to our school system and our children would be an incredible understatement. Since 2001, members have donated not only innumerable supplies, but also innumerable hours of their time, to our schools.
Since 2012, the Assistance League has provided over 8,000 uniforms to students.*
Their commitment to our students is multifaceted and far reaching. One of the most impactful acts of generosity they exhibit is called Kids in Need. Through this program, Assistance League provides a uniform packet containing a pair of khaki pants, a navy-blue shirt, navy-blue sweatshirt, several pairs of socks and underwear as well as a toiletries package, including a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo and conditioner, to students that school counselors have identified as in need. Some students receive two uniform packets, others receive one. These items are handed out to students at seven Title I schools in our county to ensure students have the uniform they need for school. To put both the need and the generosity in perspective, in just one year, Assistance League of the Chesapeake provided 2,506 new school uniforms for 1,829 students. Julia Walsh, principal of Tyler Heights Elementary School (one of the schools supported by the Assistance League), shared that this partner’s “support and commitment to ensuring our students are dressed for success greatly impacts our school culture.”
However, their commitment to our schools does not end with supplies. Assistance League volunteers also give their time. In the 2017-2018 school year they donated 1,877 hours and they are already up to approximately 1,000 hours in this year alone. Whether guest reading, helping with vision and hearing screenings, puppeteering, ice cream scooping—when there is a need, League volunteers happily step in to help. They even offer holiday fairs each December where volunteers help students “shop” for gifts with their “good behavior” dollars. Many of these gifts are donated by League volunteers.
Literacy is a priority for AACPS and Assistance League. League volunteers staff a monthly Guest Reader program in several high-need schools. They tutor in the Chessie Reading Club at Meade Heights Elementary School. Books are distributed at the end of the school year, with an extra book given to graduating 5th graders to commemorate their accomplishment. At one school, volunteers assist fifth graders in writing letters to students attending a Title I school in Virginia. These activities directly support the school system’s commitment to increasing the percentage of students who read on or above grade level by the end of 2nd grade as well as our commitment to increasing the percentage of students who meet or exceed expectations on standardized reading, language arts and mathematics assessments.
Assistance League is also committed to cultural arts. Two puppet troupes perform for 2nd grade students attending Anne Arundel County Public Schools, exploring the issues of disability, cultural differences, bullying, and other social problems, using life-size puppets. We were struck by the message of one student who thanked them by saying “It made me feel that being different is good. Now I am so, so grateful by how I look and what my language is.” Obviously, what they are doing for our schools and students is powerful.
Lyn Hopkins, President of the Assistance League of the Chesapeake understands the impact that volunteering can having on our schools and our students. She shares, “We are honored to partner with AACPS to see the lives of children changed. We know that the seeds planted by our volunteers bear much fruit under the nurturing care of the school staff. Together we add to children’s lives in ways that can have an enormous impact on their futures.”
Assistance League’s partnership with AACPS may be best summed up by Georgetown East Elementary School Principal Andre Dillard, who says, “Assistance League is one of the lifelines of [our school]. They are equivalent to our school being on a game show and having to phone a very consistent, caring, giving and loving friend.”
Learn More about the Assistance League® of the Chesapeake, Inc
The Assistance League of the Chesapeake provides a wide range of support to Title I schools across Anne Arundel County.
Assistance League® of the Chesapeake, Inc is a nonprofit all-volunteer organization dedicated to improving the lives of children and adults through community-based philanthropic programs. Seventy-plus members give generously of their time and resources to ensure that our commitment to children in Anne Arundel County can be sustained. This group generates thousands of hours of service to the local community, touching the lives of more than 12,000 children and senior citizens. Learn more at https://www.assistanceleague.org/chesapeake/.
*Photo credit: https://www.assistanceleague.org/chesapeake/programs/
