Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Foundation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Sioux City schools foundation director announces retirement after years of fundraising and donations
Summary
Karen Harrison, director of development for the Sioux City Public Schools Foundation, said she will retire in December and reviewed recent projects the foundation funded, including $75,000 for an ADA playground upgrade and $100,000 toward the new trades building, plus alumni and fundraising efforts.
Karen Harrison, director of development at the Sioux City Public Schools Foundation, told the school board on Oct. 13 that she will retire in December and outlined the foundation’s work supporting district programs and students.
Harrison reviewed the foundation’s mission and recent grants to district projects. She said the foundation provided $75,000 toward an ADA-compliant upgrade to the Leeds playground and gave the district a $100,000 check to support the new trades building. She also described alumni outreach (a database of roughly 26,000 graduates and a broader alumni target she estimated at 50,000) and said fundraising events this year raised about $40,000; the foundation’s annual “adopt-a-grad” effort helps roughly 100 graduates with caps and gowns.
Harrison emphasized the foundation’s role filling “basic needs — food, water and shelter” for students and said the group supports STEM, arts and career-and-technical education programs. She described efforts to expand sponsor relationships and to provide eighth-grade engagement labs that she said will continue for "eight to 10 years." “We are your nonprofit to help you as district members, to accomplish your priorities you’ll set forth,” Harrison said.
Board members thanked Harrison for her leadership and cited the foundation’s role in reducing district costs and raising community support. Director Grama said Harrison “drove that discussion” about closer collaboration with the district, and other members noted the foundation’s role in playground dedications and community events.
The foundation’s work, as described to the board, includes targeted supports (clothing, school supplies, menstrual-hygiene products), alumni outreach, and event-driven fundraising that district leaders said increases visibility for Sioux City Schools. Harrison said she is working to transition responsibilities to the next director and encouraged continued board support for foundation efforts.
The board did not take formal action on the foundation presentation; it acknowledged the report and offered thanks to Harrison ahead of her planned retirement.
