Wylie ISD Education Foundation, Inc.

Though many parents have never heard of their local K-12 education foundation, chances are their children are impacted daily by the foundation's work. While each foundation is unique in its operation, its programs and the resources it provides to its community, all share a common commitment to improve education at the local level. WEF works to create a better future for the WISD students and the local community through their support of programs such as arts, music, gardens, special education and STEM. The belief is that strong schools build strong communities.

The money given to the Foundation has a direct impact on our kids. Some of it makes college tuition a little easier to handle, some of it goes to programs that make school a little more special and some of it just make it a little easier to go to school at all.

When looking at programs to fund, focus toward the district's goals is at the forefront of every decision. A strong partnership with the school district is critical in maintaining value and trust. The Wylie ISD faculty set goals and objectives. The foundation's mission is to help them meet and exceed these high standards. Wylie ISD is an incredible school district to be a part of and it is an honor to work alongside Superintendent, Dr. Vinson to help fulfill his vision for all 21 campuses.

The foundation could not function with such vast capacity without its volunteers. Each and every volunteer is a huge asset for the foundation. From Watch Dog Dads who donate their hours to those who give their spare time to help pull off events such as Annual Gala or the Dash in the Dark 5K – we value each and every person who gives of their time. Marcia Coker, facility manager for Wylie ISD says, “I choose to commit my time and money because we not only touch the lives of kids today, we assist the generations to come." The impact of the foundation is that big!

The money that donors give through our major events help fund grants that bring programs to the kids of Wylie ISD that otherwise would not exist.

Last year we had a total of 65 grants written with an ask of over $137,947. We funded 49 grants at $110,677. We are looking to fill that gap by raising additional funds, targeting specifically the parents of our students and going additional grant writing.

Our grant application was designed to be universal, using an industry standard format. This structure will allow us to take the ask externally and without a ton of extra work to help fill the funding gap.

Due to time and staff constraints, we have not been able to do a lot of the additional grant writing.