The connection between USD 232 and its nonprofit education foundation is now formal.
Earlier this week, the USD 232 Board of Education signed off on an official agreement with the USD 232 Education Foundation, essentially putting in writing what has already been working in practice through a memorandum of understanding.
“The purpose of the MOU is to acknowledge the special status that the foundation has with the district and its relationship, which is different compared to other non-district organizations,” district spokesperson Alvie Cater told the school board Monday evening. “This is a win-win situation.”
The agreement formalizes the relationship
- The foundation was established in 2019 at the urging of Superintendent Frank Harwood when he first took over the district’s top post.
- Other districts in Johnson County have had long-established education foundations, which are nonprofits aimed at raising additional funds for schools and students.
- Now that Harwood is retiring after the current school year, district officials said there was the need to make official the partnership between the district and the foundation.
- The agreement, approved by the board in a 4-0 vote, also “promotes clarity, accountability, and mutual understanding,” a school board packet says.
- Currently, the school district lends staff member Casey Rooman Smith to serve as the foundation’s executive director, and there is also an 11-member board of directors made up of district staff, school board members and community members.
The district will still be represented on foundation’s board
- Going forward, the school district will have required representation on the foundation board, both through the superintendent or a designated school board member.
- Rooman Smith’s contributions to the foundation — which averages about 10 hours a week — will continue to be paid for by the district until the foundation can assume the cost.
- The district will also continue to offer office space and technical support as needed.
- On the other hand, the foundation will continue to accept and solicit donations from the community independent of the district, and its board of directors will decide how to allocate those funds, potentially in line with the district’s priorities.
- The document enumerating both parties’ individual and collective responsibilities can be found on pages 121, 122 and 123 of the February school board agenda.
Foundation has raised $70K since 2019
- Those funds have gone back into local schools through classroom, spotlight and employee grants.
- The amount the foundation raises is expected to grow as the foundation gets more established, district leaders say.
- “We are young, we’re new,” board president Ashley Spaulding said. “But we are getting there.”
Go deeper: Read more about the foundation’s mission and history here.
