The Hurricane Relief Adopt-A-Teacher Program

Brock Elementary School, Slidell, Louisiana

The Adopt-A-Teacher program was developed in the wake of the devastation of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which affected the Gulf Coast region in the summer of 2005. After initial contact with the St. Tammany Parish School System, located near New Orleans, Louisiana, Susquehanna University identified a school which it could “adopt” and hopefully help rebuild after the hurricane. The faculty, staff and students of Brock Elementary School, now housed at Florida Avenue Elementary in Slidell, Louisiana, lost everything in the hurricanes. Their school was completely flooded, and they have not been able to return to the building since Katrina hit. Although many of the students' resources have been replaced, the teachers are still in desperate need of instructional materials.

Sixteen teachers provided Susquehanna University with a “wish list” of materials they'd like for their classroom. Some of these teachers do not even have classrooms of their own at this time; they are sharing with other teachers or are teaching in hallways. The goal is to raise enough money to cover the needs of each of these teachers; the money will then be converted into gift cards for each teacher to utilize for replacing materials according to the individual needs.

A Brock Elementary School teacher, Tish Casey, with one of her students.

There are two ways to help – you may choose to simply make a monetary donation toward the project, or you can adopt an individual teacher for $250 and receive a picture of the teacher. The hope is to raise a minimum of $250 for each teacher.

If you're interested in helping and/or have questions, please contact Lauren Bush via phone at (724) 681-3807, via e-mail at LaurenLBush@yahoo.com, or via mail at 779 Schenley Road, Leechburg, PA 15656. Cash/checks can be sent to Lauren Bush and made payable to Susquehanna University, Memo: Adopt-A-Teacher.

The recovery work continues in the Gulf Coast region, and children's education is of utmost importance as the region rebuilds itself. Thank you for helping our nation's young people in this way!

-- Lauren Bush '06