ANNUAL REPORT

The SSF club surpassed their fundraising goal by creating a presentation to inform Bridgewater faculty and staff about SSF. At the beginning of this year, clubs at Bridgewater College were restricted from using an electronic system to accept donations. With all club meetings and classes happening remotely, however, the school needed to find a solution to this restriction. SSF partnered with the Bridgewater College Office of Advancement to create and pioneer a new electronic payment system.

Many of this year’s applicants faced financial difficulty due to the pandemic. There was an applicant whose mother was an elementary school bus driver who experienced a significant loss of income and was not eligible for unemployment. The applicant and their sister had to return to college but could only work part-time. The family was evicted and forced to move out of their home of six years. They requested a grant from SSF just to keep themselves above water. Every year, the club faces challenges and difficult applications but this grant application stood out as particularly memorable and impactful.

Dubuque Senior High School’s SSF club ended their second year as a club with flying colors. They provided a total of $5,277 in grants to students, teachers, and school departments.

Their grants supported individual students and their families who needed assistance with payments for groceries, gas and other necessities. They also funded several teacher and school needs, including new band equipment, supplies for Special Olympics, dissection tools and science books for the science department, and more. One of the most special grants they made this year was to a staff member who needed help buying clothes and other items for herself and her kids. The SSF club was able to provide even more than requested and the stores where she purchased items gave her an additional discount. 

The Dunnellon High School SSF Club is dedicated to making their school a more equitable and welcoming place through providing grants to fund classroom and facility resources and improvements as well as financial aid to students for in-school needs.

In the 2020-2021 school year, Dunnellon SSF granted a total of $6,951 to needs across the school. Their largest grant of $2,400 went toward purchasing new graphing calculators for the math department, which was critical because many students cannot afford to purchase their own. The SSF club invested in the school’s library, helping to purchase new books, new decorations and new tools such as laminating film.

In the spring semester, they provided funds to the Dunnellon High School boys’ and girls’ tennis teams to purchase tennis balls, which is always the largest expense for the teams. The donation allowed the teams to not have to extensively fundraise and practice more instead. As a result, the boys’ team finished with an overall record of 6-2 – the best team record in over fifteen years. The girls’ team finished with a winning record for the first time in five years. Two players were nominated for the all-county team. For the first time in DHS boy’s tennis history, one of the players was offered a tennis scholarship. Each player finished the year on the honor roll.

As the tennis coach said, “[The SSF] donation had a DIRECT IMPACT on the success of these wonderful young people.”

The remainder of the SSF club funds went toward ensuring all school departments and students were equipped with the supplies they need for success, including purchasing headphones to enable deaf or hard of hearing students to listen to audiobooks.

This was the first year for the Northeast Iowa Community College SSF club at the Dubuque/Peosta campus. Despite starting during an unusual year, they rose to the challenges they faced.

They supported individual students through grants for internet expenses to enable virtual learning and daycare expenses so student parents could remain enrolled. The SSF club also supported the school’s Diversity Club with a $1,000 grant to advance their mission of supporting diverse students.

One notable grant helped a student with transportation needs in order to stay in school. After receiving the critical funds, the student reached out personally to many SSF members to express thanks and share how the grant was a game changer.

For their first volunteer experience, the SSF club hosted a donor celebration run by student volunteers. The President of SSF served as the keynote speaker. The event was very well received, with both students and donors reporting feeling empowered.

The Stetson University SSF club didn’t let the pandemic slow them down! They got creative by relying on virtual recruitment and club meetings and continuing to commit to volunteering and  fundraising. Like many clubs, they saw an increase in student food, medical and travel needs, which is where the bulk of their grants went. They also committed funds to assist international students who were stranded at the school due to pandemic restrictions. 

One particularly impactful grant went toward supporting a student who disclosed their sexual identity to their family and was subsequently cut off financially. SSF helped the student to not only pay for school but to buy food and toiletries. 

The SSF club once again volunteered with the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. They safely interacted with members of the DeLand community and helped them to file taxes to the IRS for free. The club also made time to meet with the school’s fundraising department, which helped SSF with training and tools to cultivate and solicit donors. They made introductions to Stetson donors, who have generously given to the club.