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Oley Valley Community Education Foundation reports rising grants, scholarships and 30th-anniversary gala
Summary
OVCEF described its grant-evaluation process, reported spending about $117,000 in education grants in 2024–25 and roughly $135,000 this year, and said scholarship awards will increase to 13 totaling $38,500; staff asked the board and community to publicize EITC-funded efforts.
Representatives of the Oley Valley Community Education Foundation (OVCEF) gave the board an annual report on the foundation’s programs, fundraising and grant process and asked the district and community to promote foundation-supported activities.
Jennifer Shore, OVCEF executive director, described the foundation’s evaluation process: school-level applications are ranked by building principals, reviewed districtwide by Mr. Westin, and then the education grant committee makes recommendations to the foundation trustees. Shore reported grant spending of about $117,000 for the 2024–25 school year and "a little over" $135,000 this current school year. Shore also said OVCEF distributes scholarships — 11 scholarships totaling $36,000 last year, with plans this year for 13 scholarships totaling $38,500 — and that some scholarships are funded from permanent endowments.
Shore explained the foundation’s use of the Education Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program: "Every dollar provided to the organization gets a 90¢ tax credit against their PA taxes," she said, noting EITC-supported grants average roughly $100,000 a year for the district. The foundation highlighted community partnerships (library summer learning and preschool story time), alumni awards, student recognition programs and the Tools of the Trade program that helps BCTC students purchase materials.
OVCEF noted it raised over $180,000 during the 2024–25 year, all of which remained in the Oley Valley community. The group announced a 30th-anniversary gala scheduled for Friday, March 27 (tickets sold out; program ads and limited sponsorships remain). Shore asked board members to keep the foundation’s events and programs visible in community communications and to suggest EITC‑eligible projects the foundation could pursue with district input.
No formal board action was recorded in the transcript; the foundation left the meeting after questions about how the district can better support foundation efforts.
