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Ashland Schools Foundation to fund Mountain Avenue Theater sound upgrade after donor gift
Summary
The Ashland Schools Foundation announced a donor-funded sound-system renovation for the Mountain Avenue Theater at Ashland High School; Foundation reported a record grant year and will hire a local sound firm for the project.
Erica Thompson, a representative of the Ashland Schools Foundation (ASF), told the board that the foundation closed a record grant year and received a generous gift designated for the Mountain Avenue Theater at Ashland High School.
Thompson said ASF fulfilled 127 grants totaling about $129,000 this year, up from 72 grants the previous year, and that donors helped pay for additional instruments and programming such as free guitars for kids. She announced that local theater‑minded donor Richard Hay made a directed gift to the foundation to replace and upgrade the theater’s aging sound system, much of which was installed roughly 25 years ago.
ASF plans to contract Darren Lee Sound, a local sound engineer, to design and install the upgraded system over the summer so that the theater will offer improved acoustics and more reliable equipment when students return in the fall. Thompson said the new system will also be used as a training opportunity for students in the high‑school tech program, with adult supervision.
Board members asked whether students would have hands‑on access to the new gear; Thompson confirmed the tech program will be involved in operating and learning the system under supervision. The foundation also said it is continuing fundraising and will publish a summary of its grants and projects in an upcoming newsletter.
The board thanked ASF for its support and the donor for funding the renovation; no board vote was required for the informational report.
