WL Schools asking for help

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - The West Lafayette School corporation is desperately reaching out to the community for donations through a fundraising letter.

The letter addresses the dire need of funds for the school corporation.

It is asking people to help by contributing money so it can bring back some of the rif'd teachers.

" We need those teachers. We want those smaller class sizes so we believe in them and we want to raise as much money so that we don't have to go through this year in and year out," said Brad Cohen, West Lafayette Schools Education Foundation President. "We're in a situation that's relatively dire so it's very important for us to continue our campaign."

Efforts for Secure our Schools or SOS have been ongoing since earlier this year. From cook outs at Cumberland to block parties, the fundraising efforts have helped bring back two teachers. But Cohen said as school time approaches, the fundraising needs to be taken a step further.

"We've got about 2,000 kids in the school system and we were short about $600,000 to $650,000 on just this years budget alone, that's why we had to RIF the 13 teachers," said Cohen.

The goal is to raise $300 per child in the school system

"If everybody participated at that level obviously the feeling was we'd be able to bring back almost all the teachers," said Cohen.

But Cohen said any little bit will help.

"We're excited whether somebody gives us $50 or $500 because we do know that they're doing the best they can," said Cohen.

He said the fundraising won't just be for bringing back teachers this year, it's also to ensure the job security of its teachers in the years to come.

"There's no doubt we envision needing more money every year. I mean these stimulus dollars are only going to last us two years from the state. This is going to be an ongoing effort," said Cohen.

If you haven't received the letter yet, and you live in the West Lafayette area, you should receive it sometime this week.

Cohen said any donations made are tax deductible.