Banning Lewis Academy has received a $1.45 million donation to go towards a number of school upgrades and staff resources.

The donation comes from the Banning Lewis Ranch Schools Foundation in partnership with BuildStrong Education, an Oakwood Homes Foundation.

The check was presented during a celebration assembly at Banning Lewis Ranch Academy’s gymnasium and featured ACCEL Schools Regional VP Dr. Leanne Weyman, Oakwood Homes Founder and CEO Pat Hamill and representatives from Covington Homes and Richmond American Homes in attendance.

“We were thrilled,” Weyman said upon learning of the donation. “It’s not every day you get a phone call saying you got $1.45 million.”

Specific upgrades that the funds will go towards include remodeling the academy’s science lab, installing additional cameras for classrooms, expanding its theater program, adding a classroom library into every ELS classroom and purchasing two 15-passenger vans for athletics and club events. The vans will provide the schools with their own transportation for the first time without having to rely on parent vehicles or renting school buses from D49.

Some $750,000 will go towards a complete renovation of the elementary school’s playground, which hasn’t been updated since the school opened in 2006, with modern-day technology in play areas to primarily improve overall safety and accessibility for students with specialized needs.

Additionally, funds will also be targeted for teacher support programs and resources. Additional training and professional development along with appreciation events and wellness resources, including yoga classes and fitness centers, will now be funded through donations rather than the teachers themselves.

“That’s becoming an area that’s getting more focus,” Staff and Program Development Director Rick Dahlman said on teacher wellness and well being.

How exactly the donation funding was to be spent was part of the initial application process. Teachers, staff, parents and even students provided input to the school’s board to identify specific areas of the schools that could be most improved.

Banning Lewis Prep principal Athena Rehorst said this was at the suggestion of the foundation when talks first began about a year ago.

“I was shocked,” she said. “Not just by the amount, but by the fact that it was staff-driven. They (the foundation) had no agenda, which isn’t always the case.”

The Banning Lewis Ranch Schools Foundation began in 2012 under Oakwood Homes soon after it became the master-planned developer of the Banning Lewis Ranch community. As each home was built since then, the homebuilder made a voluntary contribution towards the foundation.

Since then, the foundation has provided funding for staff holiday parties, senior breakfasts and other school events with expenses outside of their budget. The foundation has also assisted in the initial draft-planning of the academy’s high school campus during its infancy.

“We learned early on that having a great education system is as important to a community as having a great sewage system,” Hamill said. “We believe that great quality leads to great outcomes.”

This donation marks one of the larger single contributions from a private foundation to a charter school in the region. 

“It’s uncommon at this scale,” Weyman said of the foundation’s partnership with the school. “It’s very unique.”  

Representatives of the Banning Lewis Ranch Schools Foundation present Banning Lewis Ranch Academy a check for 1.45 million during a ceremony Friday.

courtesy of Banning Lewis Academy