We are so excited to have chosen Cedar Ridge High School for our November recipient for Cause to Promote! Kelly Wedding (a teacher at Cedar Ridge High School) wrote in a couple of months ago inquiring about any misprinted calculators that might be given as a donation. We did not have any to send her, but encouraged her to apply for Cause to Promote.
On her application Kelly wrote that Cedar Ridge High School would like to provide regular or scientific calculators to their high school students who cannot afford them. Cedar Ridge HS serves a population that is about 60% minority and about 60% economically disadvantaged. The $6 scientific calculator the kids need for physics or chemistry is beyond their budget.
Kelly explains that Cedar Ridge High School plans on putting calculators in the hands of students, so they can keep them and use them at home, instead of sharing the few that are allotted to the classroom. This would allow students to get homework done, improve grades, and improve their attitudes about their upper level classes.
I had the opportunity to speak with Kelly on the phone earlier this week and she shared a story about one of the kids who did not get his homework done. She asked him why he did not complete it and he stated “I don’t know” she asked him again and then realized that his clothes were old and he looked as if he was hungry. She said a $6 calculator seems like no big deal to most people, but when you don’t even have money to buy food, it is a big deal. I did my best to stay composed on the phone as I fought back the tears.
To end this blog on a higher note, Kelly did share with me about the excitement that the kids had when they found out they were going to have their own scientific calculators to take home! The quote below is on the signature of Kelly’s email. It is something we should all keep in mind, always.
“Be kinder and more polite than necessary. You don’t know what battles the other person faces and what a difference your interaction makes.”
