‘We’ll match you up to $30,000.?
Those were not the words Melissa Williams and Holly Bennion were expecting to hear from Oxford Superintendent Tim Throne when they attended the Oct. 28 school board meeting.
Williams and Bennion were representing the Daniel Axford (DA) Elementary and Oxford Elementary School (OES) Playground Committee, which has been working hard over the past year to raise money to replace old and dilapidated equipment at both schools.
‘I was very disturbed after watching the (Oct. 14) board meeting where it was approved for $142,731 to (be spent on) the preschool early childhood playgrounds,? Willams said. ‘If we had $280,000 we could tear down and replace both DA and OES playgrounds.?
The $280,000 Williams was referring to was an additional $137,945 on top of the $142,731 that was approved in a second motion for site work, landscaping and construction of the playground equipment.
While they understood the playground upgrades for the preschoolers were necessary for licensing purposes, they still struggle with the cost of it all.
‘It’s hard for us to imagine in the summer, when that goes up, our kids go out to recess and they’re looking through a fence at this Taj Mahal of a playground in comparison to what they have,? she said. ‘It’s going to be very hard to explain to them (why) they’re not allowed over there to go play on it.?
Williams believes playgrounds are a reflection of the district and if she was a mom deciding which district to enroll her kids in, the playgrounds at DA and OES show ‘the district isn’t providing what the (students) deserve.?
‘We know as parents that inside these schools, they’re getting everything they need. They’re getting a great education,? she said. ‘I’m speaking from the point (of view) of parents who do not get to see what goes on inside of the school.?
While this isn’t their first plea before the school board, Willams said after a year of hard work and raising more $13,000, it’s starting to feel more like a David-and-Goliath match-up.
‘At this point, my 3-year-old will be in middle school by the time we get both playgrounds covered,? she said. ‘We just want to know what we can do to get this fixed. If it’s just up to us five moms (on the playground committee), it will take forever.?
‘If we could have gotten 10 percent of what you gave OELC for licensee equipment,? Williams added, ‘we could have broke ground this year on a piece of equipment for Oxford Elementary.?
Williams said she hopes the board, in the future, would consider contributing funds to the project. It was at that point, Throne explained his plan.
‘Just so you know, I am not just making this up. I actually had a conversation with (DA Principal) Chad (Boyd) maybe a week or so ago and at that time, Chad was telling me how hard you guys have been working,? he said. ‘I told Chad, you make sure you let the group know that whatever dollars they raise, I’ll guarantee up to $30,000 match. So if you’ve raised $15,000, I’ll give you another $15,000. If you reach $30,000, the district will match another $30,000.?
‘You made valid points and so I guess I just want you to know we are listening. We do want to partner with you,? Throne added. ‘What I take out of this is maybe we need to continue to get better at our communication and we’ll get there.?
‘I was close to tears when he announced the matching program. The five of us moms have been putting so much time into this and were starting to feel like the wind was being sucked out of our sails,? Williams said. ‘It gave us a new sense of excitement to get to our goals . . . the way we felt when we first started our mission a year ago. We are very grateful.?
Willams noted they currently have $14,700 to contribute to what Throne is offering, which would put them at $29,400.
‘Our goal for our first piece (of equipment)\ at OES is $30,000, so looks like we will be able to get that for sure,? she added. ‘We have a second goal of $30,000 towards DA and if we can come up with $15,600 this year, we will have taken every dollar Mr. Throne just put on the table and that is what we are hoping to do. We hope that the news that they have offered this money will help us increase donations, so that we can take advantage of every penny.?
The playground committee is also looking to work with Sam Barna, the district’s assistant superintendent of Business and Operations.
‘We hope that we can make a plan with Mr. Barna, so that any piece we pick, can in the future coordinate with what the district (hopefully) will be able to purchase for their elementary schools. There are playground pieces that can be bought in parts and put together one piece at a time.?
As far as when the matching money will be disbursed, Throne said the district probably won’t be able to disburse it until July 1.
‘If . . . we find in the mid-year when we amend our budget (that) we can do (it) before and spend money in the springtime, instead of waiting until summertime, then we’ll move that up as well,? Throne said.
Throne later told this reporter that funds for the preschool playgrounds did not come out of the general fund. He explained that OELC receives its own funding, which is separate from the rest of the grade levels.
‘OELC has its own budget and funding. If we took the money they made and spent it on another part of the district, we’d be in violation of law,? Throne explained. ‘That money can only be used for certain things, part of which includes playground equipment upgrades.?
Prior to buying any equipment for grades 1-5, Throne noted the district will need to design a master plan for each of the playground. The district will have to spend money on some of the pre-planning
‘We want to make sure we’re maximizing everybody’s dollar both today and tomorrow. That we’re not buying something today that we’ll be throwing out later on, we want to be smart about it,? Throne said.
Donations can be made at’www.gofundme.com/daoes-playground. Follow them on Facebook under ‘Playground Funding.? Questions and fund-raising ideas can be e-mailed to’playground.daoes@oxfordschools.org