What is Friends of Peirce?
Friends of Peirce (FOP) is a fundraising organization for Helen C. Peirce School of International Studies in Chicago's Edgewater community. FOP is 501(c)3 non-profit corporation governed by our bylaws and are managed by a board of directors comprised of volunteers from the Peirce School community.
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What is the mission of Friends of Peirce?
Friends of Peirce is organized to support Helen C. Peirce and its students by providing funding and resources to enhance academic excellence, to improve the student experience, and to support extracurricular opportunities of all Peirce School students.
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Why is Friends of Peirce raising money?
Chicago Public Schools allocates a certain amount of money to each school in the district. After review of the budget, Peirce Administration identifies a list of programs & improvements not covered. Friends of Peirce tries to fill that gap.
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Who is a Friends of Peirce member?
All parents and guardians of current and former students of the Pierce School are automatically considered members of Friends of Peirce. Membership in Friends of Peirce is also available to any person interested in furthering the Mission including, but not limited to, alumni and community members.
Every member of FOP is invited to attend monthly meetings and join any of the committees. Meetings are held during the school year on the second Tuesday of every month at 6:30pm. They are currently held via ZOOM. You can register for an upcoming meeting HERE.
Lend your talents to Friends of Peirce. We can't do it without your help. Fill out our form.
Join our email list to receive updates and news from FOP.
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Every member of FOP is invited to attend monthly meetings and join any of the committees. Meetings are held during the school year on the second Tuesday of every month at 6:30pm. They are currently held via ZOOM. You can register for an upcoming meeting HERE.
Lend your talents to Friends of Peirce. We can't do it without your help. Fill out our form.
Join our email list to receive updates and news from FOP.
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What does Friends of Peirce fund?
Priorities presented by the school administration that enhance academic excellence, improve student experience, and support extracurricular opportunities of all Pierce School students. The 2020-21 year was an exception, but historically we have series of annually recurring programming and projects that we fund. If we are able to raise money beyond the cost of those goals, we can commit funds to special projects.
What are the yearly expenditures?
- Arts programming for each grade level to provide enrichment beyond what is offered by Chicago Public Schools. These programs are evaluated and selected by the administration and teachers of each grade. In the past have been: Lookingglass Theatre, Barrel of Monkeys, Design Dance and Black Ensemble Theatre.
- Yearly stipends for each teacher to purchase classroom supplies.
- Learning Garden Support
- Library and Online Subscription Support
- Support for In-School Assemblies
- Yearly Support for Middle School Trip Scholarship Program
- Yearly Support for the Parent Service Organization
What special initiatives has Friends of Peirce been able to fund in the past beyond the annual recurring commitments?
- In School Assemblies focused on Anti Bulling
- New Drinking Fountains and Water Bottle Filling Stations
- School Spirit T-shirts and Masks
- Additional Chromebooks for Remote Learning
- Murals and Art Projects
- Science Lab
- Dance floor
How does Friends of Peirce raise money?
In this unusual year we have severely curtailed our fundraising efforts per guidance from CPS and Peirce administration. Historically we use a variety of efforts including events, sponsorships and support of local businesses.
Sponsorships
Sponsorships
- Family sponsors
- Local Business sponsors
- Eat out to give back to Peirce! We partner with a local restaurant who then gives back a portion of the sales from that day. We celebrate those businesses with our Pickles' Picks.
- A special partnership with Hopleaf. All proceeds on that day are donated to support the arts at Peirce.
- Harbor Night - A gala-style fundraiser
- Move-a-Thon - A fun school spirit event
- Orange Shoe
- In Fine Spirits
- Bar Roma- Mom’s Night
- Bookfair
- Babysitting Nights
- Jumping World
- Ninja Night
- Winter Fest (a Peirce Service Organization (PSO) event)
How can I support Peirce and Friends of Peirce
There are so many ways to get more involved with our community if you wish. You could....
- Attend an FOP or PSO event.
- You could volunteer at one of those events
- Be a field trip chaperone (requires you to be a Level 1 CPS volunteer)
- Become a Room Representative
- Donate and/or become a sponsor
- Get involved with one of the varied Peirce Parent Groups