We want to thank every donor and volunteer who supported our students this year. Our public schools in Chatham are resilient and thriving because of you. Please enjoy this look back at a year of empowering learners, uplifting teachers, and turning pages toward brighter futures. — Brittany Sandefur, Executive Director (Click here for PDF version)
Breakdown of the programs you helped support:
NC Education Corps (NCEC):
$37,000 secured high-impact, in-person tutoring for K-5 students struggling in reading and math. Through NCEC, 160 students received tutoring services in reading instruction totaling 1,267 hours of tutoring across 2,434 sessions.
AVID Summer Institute:
$20,000 sent a team of 16 educators to this nationally recognized professional learning experience so that they could bring back hands-on research-based training to their schools and classrooms.
Teach Chatham:
$2,500 provided scholarships to two students interested in education as a career. After attending college, the students will return to teach in Chatham County—helping address our county’s need for qualified teachers.
CHOOSE Chatham:
$25,000 helped pay the rent for three dual language and two exceptional children’s educators in six apartments as part of a pilot affordable housing program.
Grants that Grow Minds
Thanks to the support of our generous donors, CEF granted $21,800 to teachers across Chatham in 2024-25—the most ever and up from $16,927 in 2023-24. A total of 29 projects were fully or partially funded, impacting 4,000+ students.
The Chatham County Arts Council partnered with CEF to fund three arts projects, including one at Virginia Cross Elementary where 4th graders created clay pencil pots inspired by NC pottery. Art teacher Gladys Chevez said, “Not only did students gain hands-on experience with the different models of pottery making, but they also gained a better understanding of the rich history of pottery in our state.”
First graders in Laura Jozwiak’s class at North Chatham Elementary improved phonemic awareness and early phonics skills through hands-on activities using manipulatives such as magnetic wands and sound mats. Jozwiak noted the resources helped students who were well below grade level, reducing their number from 17 to 6 by year-end.
Another project connected Bonlee and Chatham Central High School, in which exceptional children (EC) made fleece blankets for animals at the Chatham County Animal Resource Center, followed by a field trip to deliver them. EC teacher Sherry Thurman said, “Our students have a deep love for animals and this grant helped them enhance their fine motor skills as well as taught them the importance of active, responsible citizenship.”
Books Across Chatham
Chatham Reads, a program of the Chatham Education Foundation and Chatham County Schools, had a busy year putting thousands of books into the hands of children.
“Reading should be fun” was the theme of this year’s Books on Break which visited seven schools in low-income communities across the county.
In all, nearly 2,400 students from pre-K to 5th grade took home a total of 10,060 books. New this year, students could also choose from several children’s magazines—all 650 of which were donated by publishers.
With a grant from Galloway Ridge, Books on Break returned to The Nature Trail community. To help boost participation, Chatham Reads provided snacks for the 71 Latino students—an increase from the previous year—as they chose 280 brand-new books.
In addition to distributing 8,500 gently-used books to community partners and supporting eight mini libraries, Chatham Reads also launched two new initiatives:
- A partnership with CORA Food Pantry, where children receive a free book when picking up meals at SNACK! sites.
- Read-aloud sessions hosted at YMCA Chatham Park and Chatham County Parks and Recreation summer camps, including one by Tate Godwin, author of the graphic novel Operation: Cover-Up.
Your gifts fuel this important work! Scan the QR code or click the yellow donate button below to make your gift.