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Foundation president outlines grants and new multi‑year scholarships to support Bristol students
Summary
Ronan King, president of the Bristol Tennessee City Schools Foundation, told the school board the foundation processes charitable gifts, runs a teacher grant program (typical awards $500–$1,000) and administers scholarships, including six new four‑year full tuition awards from the Larry Ballard Foundation.
Ronan King, identified in the record as president of the Bristol Tennessee City Schools Foundation, addressed the board on the foundation’s role in processing charitable gifts, operating a small grants program for teachers and managing scholarships that support Tennessee High students.
King described the foundation as a 501(c)(3) set up to receive tax‑deductible gifts and to serve as a fiscal “flow‑through” for larger donations. “If someone is very kind and walks into Tennessee High and gives them a $100, that's great. … they cannot deduct that from their income tax as a charitable gift unless it comes through a 501c3,” King said, explaining the foundation’s administrative role.
King described two core programs. The foundation’s grant program allows principals and teachers to apply for modest awards to support classroom projects, field trips and new materials; typical grants are $500 or $1,000, while larger one‑time awards are possible. “Most of our grants are only $500 or a thousand,” she said.
She also described the foundation’s scholarship work and named several longstanding funds the foundation manages. King said the Larry Ballard Foundation — a donor who previously lived in Bristol and now lives in Naples, Florida — awarded six full four‑year college scholarships this year. “They are giving a full scholarship for four years,” King said, noting the scholarship includes mentoring and ongoing contact with recipients.
King cited examples of prior projects the foundation has administered on behalf of donors, including renovations and a tennis center, and said the group vets requests with a nominating committee and works closely with school counselors to vet scholarship applicants. She encouraged interested community members to join the 20‑member board and described its membership as including bankers, insurance agents, realtors, current and past parents and retired teachers who help assess classroom needs.
The board applauded following King’s remarks; no public questions were recorded during the meeting after her presentation. The foundation’s grants and scholarship activity were presented as continuing supports to classroom programming, student travel and post‑secondary access.
