|
"Thank you for your consulting services for two consecutive years. Our foundation made significant progress due to your advice. The organizational structure suggested, Five-Year Plan developed and application forms shared were immediately important and helpful. Your experience from working with many other public school foundations located throughout the country was easily evident and properly shared.
You taught us many things. You taught us that successful fundraising requires the commitment and involvement of the entire board of directors. You pointed us in the right direction on many occasions in a professional manner. Thanks for giving us many excellent policies and procedures as well as bylaws. Moving us beyond a new and struggling foundation to a mature and growing one is your mark on us. Your concern and prompt input will always be gratefully appreciated and long remembered."
Steve Newman, President
Jefferson City Public Schools Foundation
Jefferson City, Missouri
"Dr. Elaine Free has worked with
us at the Galveston ISD Education Foundation since our inception. She
has been a magnificent guide, teacher, consultant and mentor - all in
one. Her knowledge, skill and experience have been vital in helping us
share our 5-Year Plan and move us toward sustainability."
Barbara K. Crews, Past President
Galveston ISD Educational Foundation
Galveston, Texas
"Your skills and expertise kept
us on track during the organization of the Carrollton-Farmers Branch
ISD Educational Foundation. You assisted us in knowing where to go to
get information and helped us avoid the pitfalls in establishing a
foundation. We will always be grateful for the support you
consistently provided throughout the steering committee process. Your
assistance in structuring the Founding Donor Campaign and your words of
encouragement after the Campaign were invaluable. Our Foundation is off
to a great start, and all of us thank you for the numerous services you
provided."
Cindy Randle, Director of Public Information
Carrolton-Farmers Branch ISD
Carrollton, Texas
"I want to thank you for all the
expertise and guidance you have shared with us to get our Garland
Education Foundation Kickoff 'kicked off.' You have been absolutely
invaluable as we worked to inform the community, plan the evening, and
work through the process of getting and receiving donations.
"Without you, we would never have
been able to translate our dreams into the reality of a viable
Foundation. I look forward to our continued partnership as we work to
get our procedure in place, our campaign completed, and our employee
campaign planned.
"With our $108,000 raised thus
far, we have made a good beginning; with your continued leadership, I
think that we can forge a foundation that will stand on its own two
feet and be the envy of the Metroplex. Again, thanks for all that you
have done and will do to help our Board make sound decisions for the
benefit of the teachers and students in the Garland Independent School
District."
Deborah Cron, Ph.D.
Assistant Superintendent
Educational Operations
Garland ISD, Garland, Texas
"I know I speak for many, many,
many adults and students for your outstanding leadership in
establishing the Education Foundation. "It
could only have been successful with a person like you who had the
broad knowledge of business leaders in Irving and the organizational
skills and tenacity to cause it to happen. "So bravo and congratulations!"
Woody Schober, Retired Director of Music
Irving ISD, Irving, Texas
“The Mesquite ISD Education Foundation was created in December 2004. In our less than 2-year existence, the Foundation has achieved a number of impressive milestones, not the least of which is raising almost $700,000 in donations and funding over $200,000 in grant applications submitted by our teachers and district administrators. Creating a successful foundation in such a short time required talented, dedicated volunteers, committed school administrators, and a supportive community. Fortunately for Mesquite, we possessed these elements in abundance; however, the key to marshalling these resources in an effective and efficient manner was our decision to hire Dr. Elaine Free as a consultant and guide. Dr. Free’s experience, resource materials and templates, and extensive knowledge of education foundations allowed us to avoid mistakes and missteps and work productively and efficiently toward our shared vision. Dr. Free was, and still is, a valuable member of the Mesquite ISD Education Foundation team and an integral part of our success thus far.”
David Belt, President
Mesquite ISD Education Foundation, Mesquite, Texas
"I began researching the formation of a
public education foundation about two years before the process of
forming ours began. By the time my research was finished, I concluded
that, while the process could be done without professional assistance,
the chances of success would be significantly decreased. For that
reason, I began looking for a consultant.
Almost everywhere I turned, Dr. Elaine Free's name was mentioned. Ultimately,
I attended the TSPRA conference in Austin, where Dr. Free was honored
for her work in establishing foundations around the state. It was not
difficult to make up my mind about whom our organization should hire.
The decision to hire Dr. Free has proven to be one of the best choices
our district made.
Dr. Free made no secret of the fact that forming an education
foundation would take more work than we imagined. She was right.
Fortunately, she has made sure that our efforts are productive and that
no time or volunteer resources are wasted. With her help, we have
gotten up and running far more quickly than I expected, and
are steadily approaching what appears to be, a very successful founding
donor campaign. I believe Dr. Free is among the best in her business.
I would recommend her to any fledgling foundation looking for a good start."
J. Jeffrey Springer
President, Sanger Education Foundation
Sanger, Texas
|
