Speedway Children’s Charities gave $7,500 for public school projects in parts of North Carolina, including Cabarrus County.
Eleven Rowan County teachers have posted projects on www.DonorsChoose.org, and the Speedway Children’s Charities money goes to purchase resources for use in the classroom. Thirteen requests from Rowan-Salisbury teachers have been funded through DonorsChoose.org to date.
One West Rowan High School class, listed as Mrs. B.’s on the Web site, sought high-tech equipment to help with a broadcast. This was their funding request:
“Our rural high school boasts several cows, chickens, goats and sheep. What we lack is an abundance of technology. I teach 11th grade honors and Advanced Placement English as well as the journalism course. We have recently added broadcast to our curriculum.
“Broadcast requires a decent amount of technology. Currently, we are functioning with only one digital camcorder that has no microphone input. Our sound quality is low and our filming time is limited to the use of one camera.
“While we need a variety of technology, our current and most desperate need is an additional camera so that we may capture sufficient footage of student activities, sports and more.”
The class sought a digital video camera with microphone input that cost $583.
Other counties that benefited from the latest Speedway Children’s Charities grant are Mecklenburg, Chester and Union counties. A representative of DonorsChoose.org said after a teacher posts a request, it has a better than 70 percent chance of getting funded by a donor who visits the site.
Speedway Children’s Charities provides funds to organizations that meet needs of children. Founded by Bruton Smith in 1982, the organization has expanded to include chapters at each of the seven Speedway Motorsports, Inc. tracks across the country, including Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord.