Dear Acknowledge Alliance Family,
May is an important month for us. Not only is it Mental Health Awareness Month, but today is also the first day of Teacher Appreciation Week! Usually, we would be celebrating with many of you at our Forget-Me-Not event. Although our spring fundraiser cannot go on as planned, we’d like to invite you to fund the hope and make a gift to support our programs at this critical time and honor the special teachers who are essential workers during this global health crisis.
The coronavirus pandemic will continue to change the lives of youth and educators long after the crisis is over. On top of their typical workload and stressors, teachers will now spend the rest of the year and beyond supporting students exposed to traumatic events, while at the same time, dealing with trauma themselves.
In order for teachers and students to fully resume learning and have the capacity to focus on academics, we need to help them heal and cope with the difficult emotions they are experiencing during these challenging months.
Resilience is the heart of Acknowledge Alliance, and one of the ways we strengthen resilience is by building relationships. Right now, keeping our connections and communication open with our school communities matters most. Our priority is to ensure that teachers and students have a safe space to feel heard, understood, and valued.
Our dedicated team of staff are counseling students through telehealth services, providing educator support via virtual meetings, and even creating new activities with videos to continue social emotional learning lessons. I’m proud to say that this is working well despite unusual circumstances. More teachers are reaching out than ever before, and we are hearing that students miss us.
Will you please join us to help create a resilient future for our youth and educators? Teachers and students deserve all the support we can give, and we count on your support, too, to serve them. Our Board of Directors will generously match up to $20,000 in donations today! Any amount helps to reach our goal.
Together, let’s give hope. The more emotional support we can provide now, the more hope we will have for tomorrow and the future. Thank you for your kindness and generosity!
With gratitude,
Sharon Navarro
Executive Director
P.S. #GivingTuesdayNow—a global day of unity to give back and support nonprofits—is taking place tomorrow too! Whether you give now or tomorrow, your support will uplift our school communities in the most meaningful ways. Thank you again.