Our Mission
The Great Oaks Education Foundation was founded in 1999 as a not-for-profit corporation committed to expanding access to quality career-technical programs and services for youth and adults, and to enhance community awareness throughout the Great Oaks district.
The Foundation has an exemplary, volunteer Board of Trustees drawn from the community, all of whom have had extensive exposure to and involvement with Great Oaks. Administrative support for the Foundation is also volunteer so that, with the exception of modest fund-raising expenses, all donations will flow directly to the identified needs.
Our Priorities
Through a Strategic Planning Process, the Board of Trustees designated the following priorities:
Administer student aid funds on a documented financial need basis to help students purchase tools for their trades and to assist qualified graduates continue their education or seek immediate employment.
Provide staff recognition for significant achievement by faculty members.
Assist with the ongoing Great Oaks image-building campaign.
Promote an awareness of Great Oaks and its programs with its varied publics.
Seek community involvement from those individuals who, through their yearly financial support, will identify themselves as Great Oaks supporters. The knowledge, expertise and support of these individuals also could be valuable to ongoing operations.
Our Board of Trustees
Mary Anne Will, Chairman
Richard Neu, Treasurer
John Halpin, Secretary
Dr. Rosemary Kolde
Ted Price
Diana Purdue
Lynn Reiber
Burchy Schulte
Cooper Snyder
John Wahle
Jim Whitworth
Dr. Roberta White, Ex Officio
Our Scholarships and Grants
"The value of the Education Foundation to the mission of Great Oaks becomes more important each year. To be successful in their chosen careers, our graduates need to continue their academic and professional training. Through the efforts of the Education Foundation, we are there to support them as they take the next steps toward productive careers." - Dr. Roberta White, President/CEO of Great Oaks
Great Oaks Education Foundation presents scholarships and grant awards to Class of 2008
Great Oaks graduating students received more than $11,000 in scholarships and grants from the Great Oaks Education Foundation. A Laurel Oaks and East Clinton High School graduate, Kimberly Stone, was selected as the $1000 Donn Hershberger scholarship, and the top scholarship winner at each campus was designated the Ted Gabe scholar.
Moving on to post-secondary education isn’t unusual for Great Oaks graduates—nearly half go directly to college. However, these students have distinguished themselves in many ways.
Just a few examples:
Matthew Cummings, a graduate of the Computer Assisted Drafting (CAD) program at Live Oaks, will major in mechanical engineering at Northern Kentucky University. As a student, he began working at Hydrotech last year and this summer will, as a recent high school graduate, help to train the professional engineers on CAD software.
Scarlet Oaks graduate Lauren Justice graduated with academic honors from the law enforcement program, and will continue law enforcement training this fall. While in high school, she earned CPR and Emergency Medical Training certification, and still found time to rise to the rank of Sergeant in the Loveland Police Department Explorer Post.
Diamond Oaks graduate Nakyra Austin is no stranger to hard work. While maintaining high grades, she has worked her way into a position as Area Manager for McDonald’s. A graduate of the Early Childhood Education program, she will attend Northern Kentucky University in the fall.
Matthew Leisure intends to honor his father’s memory by becoming a diesel mechanic. As a student at the University of Northwestern Ohio, he will student Diesel Technology. The Laurel Oaks graduate is also working as a junior diesel mechanic at Massie Transportation.
Scholarship and grants were provided through donations to the Great Oaks Education Foundation. Winners include:
Diamond Oaks
Scholarships—Tamika Hill, Michelle Langmeier, Holly McArthur
Grants-- Nakyra Austin, Dustin Johnson, Tabitha Morgan
Laurel Oaks
Scholarships--Tyler Coleman, Amanda Dixon, Kimberly Stone
Grants--Daisy Brooks, Tomi Chappius , Matthew Leisure
Live Oaks
Scholarships--Christina Bennett, Erin Chadwell, Erin Olmsted
Grants--Lanie Braaksma, Matthew Cummings, Steven Larson
Scarlet Oaks
Scholarships-- Rebecca Hensley, Anthony Mannira, Ashley Wilson
Grants-- Jeff Hensley, Lauren Justice, Raphael Williams, Bobby Wilson
In addition, the Foundation provided $13,546 in financial aid to students. These loans allow Great Oaks students complete their career-technical programs. To learn more about the Great Oaks Education Foundation or donating to help Great Oaks students, contact Andrea Earick at earicka@greatoaks.com.
