Page 17 - June JSF report

CLARKE SCHOOLS VIRTUAL MEETING REPORT
MAY 22, 2023
Videoconference
Clarke Participants:
Judy Sexton, Interim President /Head of Programs and Schools Michael Straubel, Board Co-Chair
Caroline Oberweger, Director of Foundation Relations Rachelle Ferrelli, Chief Communications Officer
Johnson Scholarship Foundation:
Bobby Krause, Lady Hereford, Sharon Wood
This meeting was at the request of Clarke Schools. They stated, repeatedly, that the purpose of this meeting was to thank the Foundation for what the JSF matching grant challenge had done for Clarke Schools. As was shown in the 2021 final report, they credit JSF for being a major reason that, during the 3 years of the grant, they were able to secure 1,155 new donors, recapture 545 donors and see 376 donors increase their giving.
Michael, whose now 8-year-old daughter was diagnosed with hearing loss, did the lion’s share of the talking. He credits Clarke Schools with his daughter’s success now in a public school. During her years at Clarke Schools he was struck by the fact that 60% of her classmates were from families with incomes below the poverty level. Michael wanted to do something to help even the playing field as Clarke Schools made it possible for these children to have the same opportunities his daughter had. This businessman quickly joined the Board of Trustees and 3 years ago stepped up to the role of Co-Chair.
He has strived to build a strong Board comprised of Trustees committed to “drive change”. Michael says he has been very intentional in recruiting Trustees with skill sets and knowledge that Clarke Schools needs, plus who are truly willing to make the commitment. Only 2 of the 17 Trustees were with the Board prior to Michael coming on. He feels they now have a strong core team dedicated to making budget decisions based on good financial data. They have helped reduce the deficit significantly while expanding services. He says 2022 was a break-even year. He projects 2023 will end with a slight deficit (in the area of $300,000). They have been looking at how programs run across the various locations and tailoring budgeting based on the expected needs at each location. T-visits have opened up services in ways that are not necessarily needed at specific physical locations, thus allowing for eliminating unnecessary expenses at some locations. He said that their work at harmonizing how services are delivered across the various campuses has also helped better target their services.
They expect to be making a big announcement soon about partnering with a major university located on the Philadelphia Main Line. Locating on this campus will bring in doctoral students and open the door to joint research. They hope to open a speech clinic which Michael described as “more than just hearing”.
They are very focused on long term sustainability and the quality of service. Judy added that they are asking themselves questions about why they are doing the things they do. They are 150 years old and are looking at how to be sure Clarke Schools will be serving deaf and hard of hearing children for another 150 years.
Page 15 HORIZONS