• Home
  • Posts
  • GCDS Center for Public Good Announces Inaugural Grant Recipients

GCDS Center for Public Good Announces Inaugural Grant Recipients

greenwich-country-day-logo

Greenwich Country Day School’s (GCDS) Center for Public Good (CPG) announces inaugural grant recipients. Together, the grant applicants’ efforts represent what is finest in all of us: an ability to recognize and deeply feel an unmet need, an awareness of what we are able to give, and the courage and passion to say, “I will.”

The CPG grant recipients’ service projects address a wide range of issues including homelessness, immigration, LGBTQ support, access to quality education, and student engagement in sustainability. This year’s grants totaling $20,000, will enable GCDS current students, alumni, and employees to help make the world a better place. 

GCDS Headmaster Adam Rohdie said, “Service to others has been an essential and deeply valued part of every Greenwich Country Day School student’s education since the school’s founding. We are incredibly proud of our grant recipients and honored to be able to support their heartfelt passion for helping others.”

In 2019, the GCDS Center for Public Good was established to secure and strengthen this tradition. In addition to planning and running service activities throughout the year with GCDS students, faculty, staff, and families, the CPG manages four grants established to encourage and support individual service efforts pursued by members of the GCDS community.

The Jon Bates Environmental Stewardship Grant

The Jon Bates Environmental Stewardship Grant was established in honor of retired GCDS math teacher and coach Jon Bates, to support work in conservation efforts, environmental immersion experiences, research projects, and advocacy work.

GCDS 10th grader Ella Brahmst received the Jon Bates Environmental Stewardship Grant for her project, which is designed to energize area high school students to learn about social and environmental sustainability.

The Jack Jepson Cultural Connections Grant

The Jack Jepson Cultural Connections Grant, named for retired GCDS history teacher and coach Jack Jepson, is designed to support student work and learning of cultures through immersion and exchange experiences.

Reaching across cultural divides and day to day challenges, Stanwich School alum Sean O’Neil will work to help Spanish speaking immigrants to build new lives. 

The cultural connections grant will also support GCDS 9th grader Kelly Holmgren in her participation with an organization traveling to Cuba to build connections with peers through basketball.

The President George H. W. Bush Grant

The President George H. W. Bush (GCDS Class of ’37) Grant was established to support work in government, health and human services, disaster relief, and humanitarian aid.

GCDS alum Uzma Sayed received a President George H. W. Bush Grant to support her participation in a program that assists recently immigrated Arabic-speaking families as they enter their new communities. GCDS grade 10 student John Brietfelder also received a Bush grant to help bring a design thinking workshop to local school children, helping them to develop the skills to identify problems, ask questions, brainstorm solutions, and then, to build prototypes and test their solutions. GCDS 6th and 7th grade brothers Imran and Irhan Iftikar received a Bush grant to support their plan to produce inexpensive and portable ‘houses’ for India’s homeless.

The Pat Young Heart of Stanwich Grant

*GCDS Faculty/Staff traveling to Guatemala: pictured from left: Denis Reyes, Anabella Munoz, Maddie Garcia, Stephanie Lehn, Kristian Leno, Hector Garcia, Michael Macri; kneeling: Dan Castrigano; not pictured: Leon Martinez, Andy Ducher, Anthony Rinaldi, Sandra Fuentes, Laurie Bayless.

The Pat Young Heart of Stanwich Grant was established in the name of founding Headmistress of Stanwich School Pat Young, to support work in health and human services, disaster relief, and humanitarian aid.

The Heart of Stanwich Grant is shared this year by a group of current GCDS employees traveling to Guatemala to help build a school and to develop and then share a greater understanding of the challenges facing Central America. GCDS Upper School technology teacher Evan Kanouse also received a Pat Young grant to create a digital learning platform that helps communities understand, embrace and support LGBTQ individuals.

CPG’s inaugural grants address world issues and breathtaking chances to make a difference, noted CPG Director Jen Donnalley, adding, “we couldn’t be prouder of this inaugural class. In the Fall, grant recipients will share their experiences with the GCDS community. We wish them all great success!”

About GCDS Center for Public Good:
Service to others has been core to a Greenwich Country Day School education since the school’s founding. The GCDS community cares deeply about the core values established in TIGER PRIDE and immersing students in the work of serving a larger community. In 2019, the GCDS Center for Public Good (CPG) was established to secure and strengthen one of GCDS’s most cherished traditions. The CPG Mission is to nourish our innate desire to make the world a better place, to learn about society and its needs, and to be inspired to take action.

Related Posts
Loading...