Want to know what we’re up to over at the Foundation?  Read about some of the things we’ve funded in 2016-17.  This year, we’ve committed over $180,000 to fund enhancement grants for classroom enrichment, clubs and activities, faculty professional development, student travel, and aid for students in financial need.  That’s our highest commitment ever, up from $120,000 in 2015-16 and $114,000 in 2014-15.

  • The Foundation significantly offset the costs for the students who participated in the Diamond Dollars math modeling competition at the annual SABR Analytics Conference in Phoenix, AZ.  This March, MLWGS became the first high school ever to take home the top prize.  An alumna noted that Maggie Walker also was the only team among the winners with a female team member (Julia Conte ’17).  From the team:

    “We want to thank the foundation for its financial contribution that made it possible for us to participate in the SABRmetrics competition in Phoenix, Arizona. This opportunity was invaluable, not only because of our victory, but also because of the additional activities we were able to experience. We attended lectures on developments in the field of data analytics. We met with a possible future employer who sought us out after hearing about our success in the competition. Beyond the conference events, we explored the Phoenix area, attended an NBA game, walked around an ASU art museum, went on hikes, and watched a MLB spring training game. Not only can we now add this competition and our win to our resumes, but we made connections that we can continue to contact throughout college and into our various careers. We will take this experience and the lessons we learned from it with us throughout our lives. Thank you again for your support.”

  • We also covered the cost for two groups of Stephanie Burr’s US History students to take guided tours of the historic John Marshall House, the preserved home of the legendary US Supreme Court Chief Justice.
  • We funded art teacher Kori Mosley’s trip to the National Art Education Association Convention in New York City in March.  Kori attended sessions on topics ranging from differentiating art instruction for students at different levels of ability to the National Art Honor Society to intersection of design education and personal voice.  She also visited Christie’s Auction House and the world-famous Armory Show.  Kori says, “Thank you, again for providing me the opportunity to attend this convention.  I have many art teacher friends who did not have such support from their schools and so were unable to experience what I did; I know I am very lucky.”
  • Georgianne Stinnett’s Photojournalism Senior Seminar students along with Photo Club members went whale watching at Virginia Beach to practice wildlife photography.
  • We covered the costs for materials for French 2 students of Dr. McLees to conduct student-run French workshops at Binford.  <<C’est important, parceque Binford n’offre pas le francais, et alors, c’etait la premiere fois que ces eleves avaient l’opportunite d’entendre et apprendre un peu de francais!  C’etait un veritable “enrichment” pour eux!>> said Dr. McLees.  Or, in English, “This was important because Binford doesn’t offer French, and so this was the first time the students had the chance to listen to and learn a bit of French!  It was a real “enrichment” for them!”
  • Over the past few months, we have provided aid for students in financial need, particularly during the college application process.  We have covered costs for SAT & ACT score reporting as well as application fees.  Stepping up our commitment to student aid had been a particular focus this year, and we’re proud to say that so far, we’ve provided nearly $13,000 to support MLWGS students in financial need with more to come.
  • We are also happy to be offsetting costs and providing student aid for a number of upcoming trips including the Music Department trip to Nashville, the Middle East & North Africa Senior Seminar trip to Morocco, the AP Comparative Government trip to Canada, the We The People trip to Nationals, and the Books, Cooks, and Culture Senior Seminar trip to New York City.

We would not be able to do any of this without the support of donors.  Thank you so much for everything you’ve contributed to make all this possible.