Ascension St. Vincent Donation Supports Teacher Locker and EVSC Schools
DECEMBER 1, 2022
EVANSVILLE, IN – Ascension St. Vincent is partnering with the EVSC Foundation to donate $12,700 to support the development of a new STEAM area at Teacher Locker and to purchase audiometers for EVSC schools. Teacher Locker, a program of the EVSC
Foundation is a place where EVSC teachers in grades PreK-12 can receive FREE school supplies for their classroom at no cost to the teacher.
The goal is to reduce what teachers spend out of their own pockets for their classrooms. This generous donation will also be used to help support EVSC school nurses through the purchase of new audiometers.
Since the beginning of this school year, Teacher Locker has served over 442 teachers, giving away over $32,000 in teaching supplies.
The EVSC Foundation and Teacher Locker volunteers work with individuals, local partners, and other community organizations to generate funding and in-kind donations for EVSC classrooms. The efforts for the fall of 2022 became focused on building a STEAM area
with supplies that could be used in classrooms of all ages. Ascension St. Vincent’s partnership with Teacher Locker will provide an updated space as well as the ability to offer highly needed STEAM supplies. The area will be named the Ascension St. Vincent STEAM
Area.
“The impact Teacher Locker has been able to have in EVSC classrooms over the last four years has been exciting. However, most of our supplies have been very general classroom supplies that meet some but not all, of the needs of our Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math courses. These courses have unique, specific needs that often come with a higher price tag than the typical classroom consumable supplies. With this grant, we now will be able to meet even more of the needs in our classrooms as we look to support STEAM education in the present and moving into the future,†says Nora Walsh, EVSC science teacher, and founding Teacher Locker Board Member.
The objective of the EVSC Health and Wellness program is to advance the health and well-being, academic success, and lifelong achievement of students. One of the ways that EVSC provides care for students is by performing state-mandated health screenings each school year. Hearing screenings are provided annually for all students in Grades 1, 4, 7, and 10, and any student suspected of having a hearing issue. These tests require an audiometer which can become costly for schools. The donation from Ascension St. Vincent will provide the funds to purchase three new audiometers.
The partnership between Ascension St. Vincent and EVSC Foundation is crucial to keeping EVSC students and educators healthy and engaged in state-of-the-art education opportunities. Ascension St. Vincent is a community partner that understands the needs of
Evansville schools. “We enjoy partnering with EVSC schools and programs to make a difference for children and support a vibrant communityâ€, says Jackie Lanan, Community Development Director at Ascension St. Vincent Evansville. “We are proud to come
alongside educators to promote health-related initiatives and deeper learning in STEAM.
FOOTNOTE: The donation will help fund the newly developed STEAM area at Teacher Locker as well as purchase audiometers for school nurses.
