The Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation & Hatboro-Horsham School District 2021 Frances Council Redd

The Frances Council Redd Fellowship

Offered by Hatboro-Horsham School District and the Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation

The School District of Hatboro-Horsham is one of the finest school districts in Pennsylvania, where we view everyone as a "Champion of Learning." Our suburban Philadelphia school district of approximately 5000 students is a forward-thinking, progressive educational organization with a rich history of academic excellence that we will strive to exceed as we move into the future.

The Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation was established with the intent of providing outstanding scholar/athletes financial assistance to pursue their higher education goals, so that they can reach their full potential. The scholarships will support visionary leaders of tomorrow who display exceptional promise today. A second goal of the Foundation is to work with high school students around the issues of “responsible decision making” through seminars, forums, videos and other education programs. Whether we are discussing safe and healthy peer relationships, appropriate usage of “social media”, as well as the consequences of drinking and driving, the ETC Foundation hopes to be on the front line of teenage and young adult education and empowerment. The ETC Foundation strives to spread this mission in the legacy of Edward Taylor Coombs, an academically gifted and athletically talented young man with an easy smile and huge heart.

Guided by community feedback from a climate survey, during the 2018-19 school year, a group of Hatboro-Horsham parents, teachers, and administrators developed an action plan to improve our collective cultural proficiency and culturally responsive school practices. One of the goals of that plan, focused specifically on hiring and retaining a more diverse workforce, reads: Increase the diversity of all HHSD staff to more closely match the makeup of our student body. While our student population is about 25% students of color, our teaching staff is about 94% white. Our community has steadily become more racially diverse, but our workforce has not. We believe that to truly keep our students healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged, our students must see themselves in our schools.

To meet this goal, the Frances Council Redd Fellowship is envisioned as a way to identify and attract educators whose cultural proficiency and experiences can help us meet this need for our students, while honoring the legacy of Frances Council Redd, a single mother who did the difficult work of raising a child while completing her degree. We invite students enrolled in accredited degree programs, or approved certification programs, with financial need and aspiring to careers in education who can help us build a more diverse teaching force to apply for this fellowship.

Interested students should contact Barbara J. Peddigree, Supervisor of Human Resources, bpeddigre@hatboro-horsham.org, for more information.

The Hatboro-Horsham School District

The Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation

The Frances Council Redd Fellowship will be offered annually to a continuing education student or graduate student matriculating at an accredited university, seeking a career change to education, and with the capacity to contribute to the fulfillment of the cultural competency goals of the Hatboro-Horsham School District. A single annual fellowship in the amount of $10,000 will be awarded for the 2022-2023 school year.

REQUIREMENTS

Applicants must:

• be a continuing education student or graduate student in education, matriculating at an accredited university, available for a long-term substitute teacher position or paraprofessional position in the Hatboro-Horsham School District.
• available to fulfill student teaching requirements in the Hatboro-Horsham School District
• intend to pursue a position as a public school teacher in the Philadelphia metropolitan area upon completion of credentials associated with their graduate program
• currently have and/or maintain a 3.5 GPA for the duration of the fellowship
• have demonstrated financial need
• demonstrate commitment to community service
• have experiences and dispositions that can contribute to assisting Hatboro-Horsham School District increase the diversity of its staff and realize its cultural competency goals

Please note: Finalists will be interviewed. The successful fellowship awardee must be available to be recognized at the Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation’s Annual Golf Tournament in summer 2022 to be recognized for this award.

HOW TO APPLY

Type or print the requested information and submit by the deadline of May 15, 2022. The application must include the following components:

• Completed application signed by the applicant
• Essay
• Copy of current transcript and/or evidence of enrollment in an accredited degree programs or approved certification programs
• One personal recommendation submitted directly to the address below (do not attach to application)

Submit completed application by mail or email to:

                The Frances Council Redd Fellowship

Attn: Hatboro-Horsham School District Human Resources Department

229 Meetinghouse Road

Horsham, PA 19044

email: bpeddigre@hatboro-horsham.org (please use subject “Frances Council Redd Fellowship”)

DEADLINE: All applications must be received by May 15, 2022 to be eligible.

Frances Council Redd Fellowship Application