May 19, 2014 (Sacramento):  Sacramento Unified Education Foundation – SCUSD’s official nonprofit organization – will celebrate the success of its fund-raising campaign for two arson-damaged playgrounds on Wednesday at John Sloat Elementary School.

Last summer, playground structures at John Sloat and Caroline Wenzel elementary schools were set ablaze. Damage was extensive and both structures were removed for safety reasons. Although SCUSD moved swiftly to replace the structures, the schools opened in the fall without them.

The district’s insurance deductible was $25,000 for each incident. Without donations, that $50,000 would have come out of the general fund budget, further hampering the district’s work to rebound from recessionary budget cuts.

On Wednesday, foundation members will join staff, students and parents at John Sloat’s Open House Night for a celebration of the community’s generous response to the group’s fund-raising efforts.

“We are so fortunate to have so many caring community members,” said SCUSD Interim Superintendent Dr. Sara Noguchi. “Our goal now is to keep the donations coming so we can begin to rebuild programs that suffered cuts over the last few years.”

Community members can donate to the Sacramento Unified Education Foundation by visiting the organization’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/SCUSDfoundation.

What: Sacramento Unified Education Foundation Celebration and John Sloat Open House
Where: John Sloat Elementary School, 7525 Candlewood Way
When: 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21