Our students have a desire to learn and grow. We are a Title I school with minimal resources. The majority of our students will never experience some of the educational tools that more affluent schools can provide. Not only are we Title I, but we are also populated by many students of active duty military families.
We are located by one of the largest military bases and serve roughly 720 students ranging from grades K-8 with the majority of our students having special needs.
Resources are slim in our area due to the poverty level and the transient population of military children coming through our school every year. Many of these students are not prepared for the rigor of our area. We spend countless hours fundraising for our classrooms. In most cases, we fall short and are unable to provide our school with some of the necessary equipment that neighboring schools have an abundance of. Our students recognize this and lose confidence in their abilities to be successful.
My Project
The baseball tees will provide necessary support to our middle school boys' baseball team. Baseball enhances large and small motor skills while building strong minds. The tees are essential for us to train offensively. These kids need to start from the basics. Major League Baseball standouts Tony Gwynn, Barry Bonds, and Chipper Jones have dedicated a lot of their success to practicing their swing on the tee. Everyone makes the team at our school allowing for those that don't make the cut in traveling sports that seem to have become more important than school sports and only take the elite. Playing team sports provides an outlet for the kids regardless of their disability or how they have been "labeled." Team sports in our school teaches kids to work together and to find their self-worth. The students desire and determination to make this team a reality every year is about to burst from them. Last year our boys excelled with very little equipment. This year they are ready to soar. They are ready to change how they are seen through the eyes of strangers. We have had funding cut, we have had our fields cared for by parents and volunteers but being small we do not get the same attention as the other larger schools in our district. Over 60 percent of our students receive free lunch and breakfast so providing equipment and uniforms for them is essential. These tees will be a training tool to use during practice and pregame to fine tune their skills. Even a dollar makes a difference to these boys.
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