Shane Stuber, executive director of the New Albany-Floyd County Education Foundation, told attendees the foundation has awarded more than $1,300,000 to educators through its classroom grants since 2010 and has added targeted mental-health grants in 2024 that have paid out more than $100,000 to date.

"I am blessed to have inherited a powerful organization that impacts kids positively on a daily basis," Stuber said, describing the foundation's suite of programs and fundraising work.

The foundation's classroom grants provide up to $500 per teacher each school year, Stuber said. He described the grants as the foundation's signature program and said they have returned funds directly to educators for classroom materials and projects.

Stuber also described the foundation's longstanding partnership with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. "To date, we have served more than 20,000 Floyd County kids," he said, adding that the program has distributed more than 630,000 books and currently sends monthly books to more than 3,500 local children. He said teachers report the program helps students arrive ready for school on their first day.

On hunger and weekend food support, Stuber said Blessings in a Backpack has raised and distributed more than $1,400,000 since 2018 to feed students on weekends. "Last year alone, we raised over $250,000 and supported nearly 2,000 New Albany Floyd County children," he said. He added that the foundation also covers the cost of student field trips.

Stuber closed by citing Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget: "The goal of education is not just to increase the amount of knowledge, but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover." He said the foundation's work aims to give teachers resources to create those possibilities.

The presentation was informational; Stuber did not propose any formal action or request a vote during the remarks.