YONDR pouches, new equipment for JROTC and SAT/ACT preparation classes for juniors. All of these are what the Midtown Foundation has spent money on recently. The Midtown Foundation is a board of Midtown parents, including principal Dr. Betsy Bockman and student support specialist Dr. Cheryl Nahmias. They receive donations from other Midtown families and then spend that money on materials, opportunities and programs for the school. The foundation can also fund requests from teachers and clubs. While the Midtown Foundation is incredibly helpful to students and teachers at Midtown, they could benefit from further student input.
Currently, the board is composed solely of parents of Midtown students. The only student involvement with the foundation is through asking for money for a club a student may run, which even then, could be fronted by the teacher-sponsor of that club. The lack of student input and involvement leaves gaps in the usefulness and effectiveness of a variety of things funded by the foundation. A student chair of the board would provide first-hand experience from the student perspective and is key in determining what funds are beneficial and if that money should be invested somewhere else. Students can also speak on issues that could be resolved by the foundation.
A controversial example of a recently funded program is the YONDR pouches. The implementation of the pouches caused uproar among students, upset that they wouldn’t have access to something that was part of the student norm years prior. But many students were left scratching their heads after seeing the price tag of the YONDR pouches: $50,000 in total. This especially seemed like a waste of money after it was clear students would find every loophole and escape from locking their phones in a pouch. It has been eight months since the YONDR pouches were first introduced to the student body and most students won’t admit it, but just about everyone has broken their pouch or not put their phone in their pouch at all. Instead, what’s keeping phones out of students’ hands is the stricter policies. Teachers have been instructed to report a student with a phone visible immediately, without notifying the student. These strict policies, rather than the pouch itself, are what’s keeping Midtown students phone-free.
All of this begs the question: was the $50,000 investment from the foundation on the YONDR pouches worth it? Not really. However, if a student was present on the foundation board, they could’ve brought that concern up immediately. Any student at Midtown could’ve predicted people ignoring the pouches, breaking the pouches open and taking any other loopholes students would find. They could’ve told the board all that was necessary was stricter rules implemented by the teacher, much like the ones we have now. If there was a student on the foundation board, it could’ve prevented the ineffective use of $50,000. This money could have been used for other things helpful to the student body, such as faster laptops, more volunteering opportunities or expansion of SAT/ACT preparation classes to sophomores.
The Midtown Foundation is incredibly important and useful for Midtown students and staff. They have invested in key things for Midtown students that improve our lives and experiences at school. However, they could greatly benefit from the presence of a Midtown student or students on the board to provide information on what would be effective for the Midtown student body. After all, the students know the student body the best.
