FALL 2020

Kutztown Strong Receives $65k in State Grant, Local Funding

KUTZTOWN, Oct. 14, 2020 – With aid from State Sen. Judy Schwank (D-11^th district), Kutztown Strong received a $45,000 Pennsylvania Department of Education Grant to address substance misuse and ensure students and families in the Kutztown Area School District, Brandywine Heights Area School District and Fleetwood Area School District have access to behavioral and health service and supports. Additionally, Kutztown Strong received $20,000 in drug forfeitures from the office of District Attorney John Adams to support the initiative.

Spearheaded by Kutztown Strong, a community-based effort to improve the quality of life in Kutztown and surrounding communities, this funding represents a collaborative effort between public and private sectors including the state, the district attorney, school districts and Communities in School.

The funds will launch a new program, Stronger Together, which will ensure more than 5,000 students and 3,000 families have access to preventative behavioral health services, and other needed resources and supports. Two master social work professionals, shared by the three school districts, will help connect families to resources to meet their basic needs and provide prevention intervention programming aimed at reducing behavioral health concerns such as anxiety, depression, substance misuse and low academic achievement. Other focuses of the program include helping families manage their household budgets and early identification of behaviors in children that might lead to substance misuse.

Speakers included Schwank, Adams and other community leaders.

 “I could not have been prouder to help Kutztown Strong obtain this grant,” said Schwank. “Funding is always an issue when it comes to projects like these, and I’m thrilled to help get it off the ground with District Attorney John Adams, and also happy to see it get the support of Kutztown, Brandywine and Fleetwood School Districts. The dollars spent here are worth so much more than emergency room visits, law enforcement costs, and the emotional devastation of families whose children misuse substances.”

“Many of us associate problems with crime and drug misuse with cities and urban schools but those of us who work in the field know that our suburban and rural communities face the same challenges,” said Adams. “I’m pleased to support today this model that really gets to the heart of what we need to be doing – getting kids and their loved ones the behavioral health services and supports they need to surmount potential roadblocks to their pathways to success in school and in life.”

“Our role in public education is to create a community of learners that have access to and the tools necessary to succeed in their educational pursuits and fulfill the promise of dreams,” said Kutztown Area School District Superintendent Christian Temchatin. “Our Board of Directors, teachers, and staff are committed to creating opportunities and eliminating barriers. With the support of amazing community partners, like Kutztown Strong, Senator Schwank and District Attorney Adams, we will now be able to support students and families with greater depth than ever before.”

“These funds, this program, will help us to meet the needs of our students,” said Fleetwood School District Superintendent Greg Miller. “There’s also an added piece here, in a state where we have 500 school districts, we see an opportunity for partnership. In this mode we’ll be able to share resources to better meet the needs of students. And I think that’s critical not just in this endeavor, but we can learn from each other in many other aspects and continue to grow to meet the combined needs of our communities.”

“I strongly believe in the adage that it takes a village to raise a child.  Thanks to the community, legislative and law enforcement partnerships, we have an incredible opportunity to make positive, purposeful impacts for the children in our community,” said Brandywine Heights Area School District Superintendent Andrew Potteiger. “These grant dollars, and this initiative, targets and puts in place supports for the children in our community that are most vulnerable to varying life influences.”

“Thanks to Senator Schwank and DA Adams, Communities In Schools has an incredible opportunity to work with Kutztown Strong and Kutztown Area, Fleetwood Area and Brandywine Heights Area School Districts to surround students and families with a community of support and empower them to have bright futures in school and in life,” said Communities in Schools President and CEO Timothy Mulligan. “We are excited to grow our CIS presence in this wonderful Berks County community.”

“Six years ago, when Kutztown strong was born, several churches came together to begin Oasis Youth Center, which has served Kutztown’s students in tandem with Kutztown Strong ever since,” said Kutztown Strong Board Member Nate Herrlin, who also serves as an Oasis Youth Center leader. “As I’ve gotten to know individual students through Oasis, it has become clear that there are as many unique needs for support as there are students in our district; whether the need is a listening ear, guidance or food.  It’s exciting to see another layer of support is being added through Communities in Schools.”

“There are so many people to thank for sharing in this dream about bringing social workers into school.  From Kathy Metrick, the founder of Kutztown Strong, to Sheryl McKlveen our community coordinator and some might say our official energizer bunny, to Senator Judy Schwank and (Schwank’s) District Office Director, Tom Gombar, thank you for believing in us and opening doors for funding,” said Kutztown Strong President Merry Schlegel. “Together we’ve built a bridge for our schools and families to have access to behavioral health services and supports. This is just the beginning; we truly are so much Stronger Together.”

For a full list of Kutztown Strong supporters and partners, visit www.KutztownStrong.org.

Contact: Sheryl McKlveen
Community Coordinator, Kutztown Strong
Email:

FALL 2019

Safe, Clean, & Green Committee

A sub-committee of Kutztown Community Partnership that takes a hands-on approach to keeping Kutztown beautiful.

Email:
Phone: 484-646-9069
Facebook: @SafeCleanGreen

The Safe, Clean, & Green Committee of the Kutztown Community Partnership was established approximately 10 years ago by a KU alum who decided to make Kutztown his home and wanted to volunteer. Keeping the town looking beautiful was important to him, and the Sunday Cleanup was born.

Each Sunday, from 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., volunteers pick up the provided supplies – gloves, trash bags, dust pans and brooms – and they focus on cleaning up around downtown Kutztown. Areas include Main Street and the offshoot side streets and alleys. Special cleanups are done if there is a problematic area or if there was an event that calls for special attention afterward.

Cleanup coordinator and KU student Victoria Nagy says that the group, which consists primarily of students, wants people to know that it isn’t only students responsible for the litter and debris left behind from week-to-week, and she would love for residents to become involved as well.

Overseen by Borough Councilwoman Arabel Elliott, the Safe, Clean, & Green Committee invites any and all residents to participate and work together toward the common goal of a safe and clean environment for everyone in the community.

To get involved, call or E-mail Victoria and visit us on Facebook.

 

SUMMER 2019

Kutztown Skate Park

Facebook: @Kutztowncommunityskatepark

A few years ago, a very scary incident planted a seed in Deborah Clauss’s head. Her son was riding his skateboard, in the street, while she watched in horror as a car almost plowed right in to him. She had just enough time to grab him before tragedy would have struck. Shaken by what happened earlier that day, Clauss couldn’t sleep, so she thought about and researched safety for kids participating in roller sports. She began to think about all of the kids, just like her son, scooting, skateboarding, bike riding or roller blading unsafely, through the streets of Kutztown, and how older kids were constantly being shooed out of local parking lots. She discovered that the number one injury to children is being struck by a vehicle, and the idea for a Skate Park, or more accurately a multi-use roller sport park, was born.

One day Clauss struck up a Facebook conversation with a stranger, Andrew Kunkel. They connected on the idea of having a place for kids to safely skateboard, among other roller activities, in Kutztown. Together, as president and vice president, respectively, Clauss and Kunkel formed the Kutztown Community Skate Park Association (KCSPA), which is a 501(c)(3) organization. They went through the process of contacting the Borough and presenting their ideas, applying for grants and holding fundraisers.

In 2018, Tiffanie Devos-Little came onboard as the KCSPA’s marketing and public relations director, and she was instrumental in starting the annual Rockin Roller Concert fundraising event.

Their collective efforts paid off as the KCSPA received $4,000.00 in support from the Borough, a $5,000.00 grant from the Tony Hawk Foundation, and an additional $16,000.00 through fundraising, plus generous local business donations such as the Skate Park sign. The hope is to hold another Rockin Roller Concert, this August, for continued fundraising to help maintain and expand the Skate Park.

While Clauss admitted that a tremendous amount of time and personal front money went in to the project, she said, “when it comes down to it, it was worth it” for the safety of the kids and the peace of mind for parents. She noted that it was important to her that the Skate Park be located in the middle of the park, so that parents with multiple young children could keep an eye on their kids, whether they were in the Skate Park, playground or sand box. As luck would have it, the perfect spot existed — the vacant area of the demolished roller rink.

On May 18, a Grand Opening was held, and Clauss was happy with the “good turnout of about 150 people throughout the day.”

It was a fun and busy day that included 15 contests in the categories of skateboards, scooters, BMX bikes and roller blades; and trophies were handed out in categories like Best Run and Best Fall, which the kids particularly liked!

The event also included music and basket raffles, as well as helmet and skateboard giveaways, courtesy of a grant awarded by Kutztown’s Fraternal Order of Eagles.

It’s safe to say that the Skate Park is a success and the seed that was planted several years ago is in full bloom. Clauss said that “feedback has been great” and the Skate Park gets about 35 visitors per day. Expansion of the 2,000 square foot structure is already being discussed and fundraising efforts will continue.

The Kutztown Community Skate Park Association wants to see tons of kids at the Skate Park this summer — HAVE FUN AND WEAR YOUR HELMETS!

SPRING 2019

Pollinator Garden

Kutztown Thriving is a sub-committee of Kutztown Community Partnership that aims to sustain a healthy community through positive solutions and holistic endeavors.
Email:
Facebook: @thrivingtown

The pollinator garden at the welcome sign at Constitution and Greenwich Streets was planted by and is maintained by Kutztown Thriving volunteers to beautify the area; benefit birds and insects by providing habitat and food; and to educate Kutztown residents about native plant and pollinator gardening.

Planted specifically for pollinators, such as native bees and butterflies, this garden and our maintenance practices, which include weeding, mulching certain areas, and timing clean up to best benefit the insects and animals that use the plants, have been aimed at keeping the pollinators safe and healthy.

We encourage pollinators and other insects to make this garden their home, while providing food and shelter for birds, and therefore we do not clean up in the fall. Leaving the stems standing is an intentional effort to leave the overwintering beneficial insects, such as native bees, in place as this is their best chance for winter survival. When they emerge in early spring, we remove the standing stems which also hold plant seeds that are food for birds during the winter.

We planted the garden in a prairie style which encourages the plants to reseed and fill in all ground area as a weed prevention technique.  We do volunteer our time to weed the garden several times each spring and summer, and while it might look a bit messy sometimes, that is what nature intended.

This garden, and two others in Kutztown, are also home to native bee houses.  Eagle Scout Griffin Price built and placed them after researching native bees. His efforts, combined with ours, are a boon to local native bees.

If you would like to keep up with the group or get involved, visit us on Facebook!