Initiatives
Erie County Community Foundation initiatives focus on fostering community growth, supporting education, and enhancing the quality of life for residents. Through grant stories, the Community Foundation showcases the real-world impact of its funding, highlighting successful projects that make a lasting difference in the lives of individuals and the broader community.
Caryl Crane Youth Theatre
R1 2025 Grantee
Amount:
$6,699
Project Description
Caryl Crane Youth Theatre presented three musical productions: "Beetlejuice" and "101 Dalmatians" from May 2-4, 2025, and "Showcase 2025" from August 28-30, 2025. These productions provide an artistic outlet for up to 200 students from Erie and the surrounding counties.
The purpose of each production at Caryl Crane Youth Theatre is theatrical arts education, focusing on creative exploration in a positive and safe environment, while producing high quality productions. Participation in all three productions is offered to the students in Erie and the surrounding counties at no cost.
This tuition-free production allows Caryl Crane Youth Theatre to serve all our community’s children, regardless of family income levels. In choosing to produce these particular pieces, we are serving our student actors, dancers and singers by enabling them to broaden their abilities and skill sets, while utilizing Broadway-style choreography, staging and orchestrations.
With a focus on creative thinking and character development, we challenge and hone our students’ abilities in physicality, while enabling them to participate in the creative process. To help offset the production costs (specifically royalty, orchestrations, costuming, sets and props) of the three productions.
Goals
We anticipate that up to 200 students, ages 6-18, will participate in one or more of the offered spring/summer productions and an additional 350 to participate in other CCYT offerings during the 2025 season. As a result of this exposure to live musical theatre, many students may then choose to pursue the profession of acting, music, dance or a related arts field as a possible college path, career choice or lifelong passion. In addition to the student participants directly involved with the production, we anticipate over 2,500 patrons from the Erie County Community to benefit as well, by our utilization of high-quality production values with affordable ticket prices.
Outcomes
We measure the success of any production that makes it from the idea stage to performance. We measure by participation numbers in both the physical production, but also the attendance and community involvement. For onstage participants, we use a set of markers to evaluate the growth of skill-sets. With the spring/summer season, our focus will be on creative thinking and character development and we measure the success by how committed the students are to the material, rehearsals, and the performance. For these three specific productions, we saw 180 students involved onstage and backstage, and an additional 240 in other productions and offerings during the 2025 season.
Each year, we evaluate our productions through a series of student/participant questionnaires and post-show roundtables, which, coupled with observations made by artistic and technical staff, and feedback received through open discussions with audiences after all performances, enable us to incorporate suggestions when appropriate to enhance the experience of our participants in the program.
Based on feedback during round tables and open forums with family members, we are adjusting our Spring schedule to add an additional opportunity for students ages 6-12 to participate onstage in. And will scale-back our Fall productions from 3 to 2, so as to not overwhelm the families and volunteers involved in our program.
We feel very strongly that all three of the productions provided an essential artistic outlet to the students of Erie County that we were able to provide tuition-free.
Advocate Skate Works
Push for Purpose - Round 1 2025
Amount:
$7,500
Project Description
The Push with Purpose program directly fulfills Advocate Skate Works’ mission by providing essential resources and opportunities to empower youth through skateboarding. Here’s how:
- Breaking Barriers to Access
- By distributing 30-40 skateboards, safety equipment, and other gear, the program ensures that local youth, including those who may not have financial means, can participate in skateboarding.
- This directly aligns with our mission to provide skateboards and related resources to empower underserved communities.
- Inspiring Through Professional Mentorship
- The inclusion of professional skaters for lessons and demonstrations offers participants an unparalleled opportunity to learn from experienced mentors.
- These role models inspire confidence, determination, and excitement, showing youth what they can achieve through skateboarding.
- Promoting Physical and Mental Wellness
- Skateboarding lessons teach participants balance, coordination, and fitness, helping them develop a lifelong appreciation for an active lifestyle.
- The sport also builds resilience, confidence, and determination—key values of your mission to enrich lives through skateboarding.
- Empowering Youth Through Skill Development
- Lessons, guided by professionals, teach not only skateboarding techniques but also discipline, perseverance, and creativity, empowering youth to overcome challenges and grow personally.
- Providing safety equipment emphasizes your commitment to ensuring a safe and supportive environment for participants to thrive.
- Building Community and Lifelong Connections
- The program fosters a sense of belonging by introducing youth to the skateboarding community, helping them connect with peers, mentors, and professional skaters.
- These connections strengthen their sense of identity and promote collaboration and support, key to building a strong, empowered community.
By incorporating professional skaters into lessons and demonstrations, the Push with Purpose program elevates the experience for local youth, inspiring them and creating lasting impacts. This initiative perfectly aligns with Advocate Skate Works’ mission to empower communities, enrich lives, and foster a lifelong connection to skateboarding.
Goals
The Push for Purpose program in partnership with Nehemiah Partners Center can aim to achieve the following goals:
- Youth Empowerment through Skateboarding
- Introduce underserved youth to skateboarding as a tool for personal growth, self-expression, and determination.
- Provide skateboards, safety gear, and training sessions to youth who may not otherwise afford them.
- Community Building and Engagement
- Foster a sense of community and connection among youth through skateboarding events, group activities, and mentorship programs.
- Collaborate with Nehemiah Partners Center to host engaging events, such as clinics, workshops, or small competitions on an ongoing basis
- Physical and Mental Wellness
- Promote physical fitness, coordination, and balance through skateboarding lessons tailored to various skill levels.
- Incorporate mindfulness and mental health discussions, emphasizing how skateboarding can relieve stress and build resilience.
- Inclusion and Accessibility
- Ensure programming includes children with disabilities by incorporating adaptive skateboarding options.
- Partner with Nehemiah Partners Center to identify and address the unique needs of participants.
- Lifelong Connection to Positive Hobbies
- Encourage youth to adopt skateboarding as a lifelong passion, promoting healthy, active lifestyles and a sense of accomplishment.
- Provide resources for ongoing engagement in skateboarding beyond the program.
These goals align with Advocate Skate Works’ mission to empower communities and Nehemiah Partners Center’s focus on community enrichment, creating a meaningful, impactful partnership.
Outcomes
We measure the effectiveness of our program through feedback from the individuals to whom we provided skateboards, their parents, and the facilitators of the organization we partnered with. We have heard from them multiple times that the kids have continued to enjoy their skateboards since the event nearly one year ago. We plan to circle back, provide lessons again, and see if they need any additional skateboard products, as always, free of charge. We were able to meet our goal of impacting the lives of dozens of local kids by providing skateboards, helmets and lessons. This has given them access to the wonderful world of skateboarding culture; a space that welcomes anyone and encourages them to be creative and resilient.
City of Sandusky Parks & Recreation
Sandusky Summer Youth Programming Enhancements – 2025 Round 1
Amount:
$7,500
Project Description
The City of Sandusky Parks & Recreation Division has provided summer programming for the past 55+ years for city residents and surrounding areas. The programming started with staffing in neighborhood parks for several weeks through the summer and has evolved to an eight-week program at Sandusky Rec’s home at the former Mills Elementary School.
This year the Parks & Recreation staff have planned and budgeted to bring back the popular Summer Break Camp that includes the registration of over 100 youth from the Sandusky area with daily attendance between 65 and 80 participants each day, five days a week for eight weeks.
We are asking for a trio of programs to be implemented this summer. The first is the addition of four field trips to our Summer Break Program participants to Erie County locations. The second is a summer rendition of the popular Midtown Supper Club called the Midtown Summer Supper Club. And the third is a summer sports camp program to keep children active during the gap in programming between the end of our Summer Break Program and the start of school.
Friday Field Trips- Four Field Trips every other Friday to Erie County locations
1) Back to the Wild Field Trip in Castalia, Ohio
2) Downtown Sandusky Field Trip, Merry-Go-Round & Maritime Museums
3) Erie MetroParks Nature Center Field Trip, Roger Johnson Nature Center at Osborn MetroPark in Huron
4) Boots to Grasses Therapeutic Horsemanship Program field trip, Boots to Grasses Horse Farm Berlin Heights
(MSSC) Midtown Summer Supper Club $2000
When: August 18-22, 2025 M-F 10am-12pm One week
Where: Sandusky Rec @ Mills Kitchen
Kickin’ it @ Mills Day Camp
- Skills camps covering Kickball, Soccer & Dodgeball
- Five-day camp 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
- Third week in August where there is a gap in programming before Sandusky City Schools students go back to classes.
Goals
The enhanced summer programming is being presented for two reasons.
1) To take the Summer Break Program to the next level with field trips for participants. These field trips make the possibly inaccessible locations to many of our kids easily accessible through this program. The field trips give our campers access to wildlife, nature, horses and history they may not otherwise visit in their daily life.
2) To help bridge the gap between the end of our Summer Break Program and the start of school for Sandusky City Schools. Our program typically ends the first few days of August and school starts at the end of August. The new Midtown Summer Supper Club and return of Kickin' it @ Mills are two programs that will fill that void to the start of school.
Outcomes
The enhancements of our Summer Break Camp achieved exactly what we had hoped to achieve when we originally started planning in early 2025. We were able to take our summer programming "on the road" literally to several area attractions that our participants may not have been able to access previously.
Our children visited two nature centers, two museums and one farm they may have never been able to visit without the generosity of the Erie County Community Foundation and the patience and dedication of our Recreation staff.
We were able to utilize our meal program with Sandusky City Schools for a majority of the field trips and had staff pick up and deliver meals to each of the field trip locations.
Every location that was visited by our 5-7 staff members and 50-65 kids provided feedback of how well-behaved our groups were when they were on site.
We learned we could actually do day-long field trips from this pilot project. From what we learned we have already started planning our 2026 locations and will be submitting a similar grant request in 2026. We measured our effectiveness by the feedback from our families and staff. This was the "highlight of their summer" in many cases and definitely made memories and a positive impression on each child participant. We were also able to expand the footprint of our programming to places outside the city limits, which was a goal set at the start of the year.
Kelleys Island School District
Island Ecosystem Connection (IEC) – 2025 Round 1
Amount:
$4,980
Project Description
The Kelleys Island Local School used their grant to support the School's Field Station programming focused on Erie County mainland schools. The funds allowed an increased number of Erie County K-12 students to participate in our STEM and wildlife-based conservation and environmental education day long field trips held on Kelleys Island.
As a designated Ohio Wild School and the only field station on Kelleys Island, we are uniquely positioned to promote and support environmental education, research, and conservation. We provide visitors with invaluable opportunities for hands-on science experimentation and learning. The primary barrier to student participation is the cost of ferry transportation, and this grant would allow us to eliminate that obstacle.
Our field trips foster responsible actions toward wildlife and related natural resources. Sound educational practices and theory back all curriculum materials and represent the work of numerous professionals in education and natural resource management from across the country.
Participating schools pay a fee of $250 and can bring a maximum of 25 students for a one-day workshop. Topics covered during the field experience include general ecology, geology, entomology, herpetology, ornithology, limnology, and dendrology. The programs are tailored for the age of the student group participating. Most of the day is hands-on learning in the woods, along the shores, and even a unique opportunity to examine fossils as they walk on glacial grooves. Students collect data and are guided through the interpretation of their findings.
Since the program's inception in 2015, Field Station programming has expanded and improved. The Field Station is a key component in the Kelleys Island Local School programming. Expanding the reach of the Field Station is a focus area of the Kelleys Island Local School District mission statement. The School Board and staff recognize that we have an opportunity to educate not only the students that attend our school but also children and youth enrolled in mainland schools. It is through Field Station programming that we can introduce and further the knowledge of future generations on the importance of the environmental sciences and the vast resources in Erie County, Ohio.
Goals
The primary aim of these field trips is to cultivate a deep understanding of Lake Erie's ecology for Erie County students. Through hands-on scientific exploration, students will engage with the lake's diverse plant and animal life, including key indicator species and their ecological roles. They will actively collect data and simulate real-world scientific practices using tools such as nets, microscopes, and water quality probes.
Furthermore, the field trips will promote critical thinking and analysis as students interpret their collected data to draw conclusions about the health of the Lake Erie ecosystem and potential environmental challenges. Students will also be exposed to current research that has been conducted on the island for over two decades, encompassing topics like invasive species, bird and butterfly migrations, and water quality management. We believe these experiences will foster interest in STEM careers, inspiring students to consider future pathways in environmental science, aquatic biology, and conservation.
We anticipate that the field trips will result in:
- Increased number of Erie County Students participating in the program.
- Increased knowledge of the Lake Erie ecosystem: Students will be able to identify fossils and rocks, explain the role of plankton in the food web, and understand the impact of human activities on water quality.
- Improved scientific inquiry skills: Participants will demonstrate proficiency in data collection, observation, analysis, and interpretation.
- Enhanced environmental awareness: Students will develop a greater understanding of the importance of protecting Lake Erie and its surrounding ecosystems.
- Positive attitude towards science: Field trip experiences will spark curiosity and encourage further exploration of science concepts.
- Potential for future STEM engagement: Some students may be inspired to pursue science-related studies or careers.
Outcomes
The program successfully expanded participation from mainland schools that would otherwise have been unable to attend due to transportation costs. By offsetting ferry fees, the grant allowed us to welcome 200 Erie County students to the Field Station, providing access to Ohio’s only island-based Wild School and field research center.
We met our educational goals by delivering engaging, hands-on programming aligned with STEM standards. Students participated in field investigations across ecology, geology, ornithology, entomology, and limnology. They collected data, examined fossils in the glacial grooves, studied shoreline and forest habitats, and learned directly from trained educators and natural resource professionals.
A key takeaway from this initiative is that transportation assistance is the most effective way to increase equitable access to field-based environmental education on Kelleys Island.
The effectiveness of Kelleys Island Field Station programming is measured through student learning outcomes, educator feedback, and long-term engagement indicators.
Teachers consistently report high student engagement and note that these real-world learning experiences significantly deepen classroom instruction. Additionally, we track repeat participation from schools and educators as a key indicator of program quality and educational value.
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Call the Community Foundation office at 419-621-9690 for more information.