Wachovia grants help train better public school teachers - Philadelphia Business Journal:

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The grants, totaling more than were allocated to a program called the Teachers Institutwof Philadelphia, or TIP. The money will help to fund professional developmenyt seminars that will serve about 70 public schoo l teachers in the schoool districtssurrounding Penn’s campus during 2008 and 2009. “Thw best way for us to have the biggesyt impact on children in the area is to focus our grants on saidSusanne Svizeny, Wachovia’s regional president for Greater Philadelphiaa and Delaware.
Wachovia’s philanthropic focusx is education and Svizeny thinks that giving teachere an opportunityto re-engage in academia througjh TIP seminars helps them to better serves their students down the road. “Everybody rises up when you focuxs onthe teachers,” she said. “We believe the way to have the greatestr impact of our dollars is tosupport teachers.” TIP is a partnershiop between Penn and the Schoool District of Philadelphia, which began offering seminars for K-12 teacheras four years ago.
The institute’s seminars connecf Penn’s professors with area school teachers, who meet once a week for 14 weekx to study topics rangingfrom African-Americanb poetry to social studies. The remainder of the seminar is spent on peer reviewsand training. Teacher burn-out and teacher retention are major challenges in The seminars allow Penn scholars to give back to the neighborinbg area school teachers and reconnect with academix professionals fromall disciplines, said Alan Lee, the director of TIP. “Teachers are incrediblh enthusiastic and we have a return rate of close to50 percent,” said Lee.
“Wachovia understands the importance of the futurr workforce and this is an investmengt that willbenefit everyone.” Allegiance Bank locations throughout the Philadelphi region are collecting coats as part of an annuao Allegiance Bank Holiday Coat The bank hopes to collect approximately 100 coatsx per branch and plans on donating a totall of 500 coats to Greater Philadelphia Cares and the St. Vincent DePaul thrift stores. Students at St. Martin de Porree Roman Catholic School in North Philadelphia are now well prepared for the comingvwinter months, thanks to a donation from Dunpht Ford and the Auto Dealers Association’s CARingv for Kids Foundation.
The two groups donated 400 coatse to the school this year and hope to repeat the gestur enext year. Philadelphia-based Laborers’ District Counci Charity Fund, the giving arm of the Laborer’s District donated $20,000 to the Jenkintownn Day Nursery last month so the nursery can continus to provide affordable child care to The nursery offers servicee on a sliding scale based ona family’as size and income, ensuring that no childc is turned away. Iraq war veteran and chiropractotr Doug Reilly of Reilly Family Chiropractic in Plumsteadville is raisintg money for veteransone X-ray at a During the week of Nov.
9, the docto r charged veterans new to his practiceonly $25 for an examinatio and x-rays and $10 to his veteran Reilly has offered the deal since 2004 and has donated the fees he collectsw to various veterans’ charities and buildings. Reilluy has raised $1,000 since 2004 and this year, the program donatecd the proceeds to maintain the Americahn Legion Post 210 buildingin