Friday, September 23, 2011
Last year, thanks to a $1,200 Lowe's Community Improvement Challenge Grant, the UNC Charlotte Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team improved the classroom security and provided essential supplies for one teacher’s classroom at West Charlotte High School. Their efforts have been recognized by Lowe's with a second grant of $2,000.
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In November 2010, Greg Schermbeck's classroom at West Charlotte High School was robbed of a projector valued at over $1,000 as well as basic classroom supplies.
At the time, students from the UNC Charlotte chapter of Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) were working with Mr. Schermbeck on a character-education project sponsored by the Success Foundation and Choice Translating. Through the project, SIFE students mentored West Charlotte students on issues such as decision making, goal setting, and personal responsibility.
Following the theft, SIFE applied for a Lowe's Community Improvement Challenge Grant, hoping to help Mr. Schermbeck make his classroom a little more secure and to add some classroom supplies to help him engage his students.
SIFE student Matt Murrow, who served as co-project leader of the character education project, said, "It's heartbreaking to see these students deprived of essential supplies. They face many challenges in their lives so we were determined to reduce the chance of future theft."
After winning the Lowe's grant, SIFE students purchased a Gladiator storage cabinet for safe storage, 20 personal dry erase boards to increase interactivity in class, and materials for science experiments. Additionally, they purchased paint to refresh some of the school-mascot lion paws found around the campus.
“The Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation and the UNC Charlotte SIFE team have graciously donated their time, money and energy to help my students," Mr. Schermbeck said. “All students deserve to have a safe and engaging educational environment. Lowe’s and SIFE have helped me to accomplish this goal.”
In March 2011, UNC Charlotte SIFE students, Mr. Schermbeck, about a dozen West Charlotte students, and two Lowe’s employees teamed up on a Saturday morning to make the improvements to Schermbeck’s classroom.
Matt Murrow remarked, “We are astonished that we had such a great turnout on a Saturday morning. It shows that these students not only want to better themselves but to help their classmates as well. We are grateful to Lowe’s for giving us this opportunity to change lives for years to come.”
According to Lowe’s, 147 SIFE teams from across the nation applied for the Lowe’s Community Improvement Challenge Grant. Fifty teams were selected to receive the grants to pay for structural improvement of community, educational, municipal, or residential facilities or operations.
After reporting back to Lowe's on the impact of their projects 25 SIFE chapters, including UNC Charlotte, received an additional $2,000 grant.
The Community Improvement Project Partnership is funded through the Lowe's Charitable and Educational Foundation (LCEF).