Orion FCU is proud to announce its adoption of Kate Bond Elementary school.

Kate Bond Elementary is a close neighbor to Orion’s corporate offices.  Located at 2727 Kate Bond Road, KBE is a Title I school with 74.8% of its students on free and reduced lunch assistance. They have 70% minority student body, with 9 ESL classrooms to cope with the large percentage of students who come from homes where Spanish is the primary language.

We recently met with Lisa Aven, Title I Coach at Kate Bond Elementary, to learn more about KBE and discover ways we could help.  “Our greatest need is for volunteers,” said Ms. Aven.  She spoke to us of the difference a steady volunteer presence would make to her teachers and students, stressing that “even small contributions, such as being a guest reader to the classes, tutoring ESL students in English word recognition, and proctoring during tests go a long way to supporting students and providing teachers with much needed relief.”  Ms. Aven also emphasized the need for teacher recognition.  Being a Title I school, their resources for giving their teachers morale-boosters such as appreciation lunches and supply gifts are scarce.

Orion hopes to fill some of these gaps by offering our employee as volunteers, encouraging student achievement through awards for attendance and honor roll, and recognizing their hard working teachers with awards and highlights in our newsletter.

Be on the lookout for monthly posts about Kate Bond Elementary, their dedicated teachers, students achievers, and ways you can help!