Verdugo Woodlands Elementary students test their moves at Survivor Challenge fundraiser
Hundreds of students at Verdugo Woodlands Elementary School on Friday showed off their footwork and agility by running through tires and tried to carefully transfer eggs from one classmate’s spoon to another as part of the school’s annual Survivor Challenge obstacle course, which is a major fundraiser for key staff positions on campus.
The parent-run challenge is overseen by the school’s foundation, Woodlanders Are Volunteers for Education, known as WAVE.
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In the past, it helped to fully fund paying for staff positions on campus such as the librarian and computer technician, which were not paid for by Glendale Unified.
But this year, Glendale Unified did set aside funds to pay for those positions at all of the elementary schools on a part-time basis, said Kristina Provost, principal at Verdugo Woodlands Elementary.
Fifth-grade teacher Katie Turner’s students, including Lillian Mehrabians, center, goes through the tire obstacle course at Verdugo Woodlands Elementary School’s annual Survivor Challenge fundraiser, at the school in Glendale on Friday, March 4, 2016.
So money raised from this year’s challenge will allow the school to pay for additional hours for the librarian and computer technician, as well as help pay for intervention teachers who can swoop in to help students who may be struggling with academics.
The fundraiser also helps pay for the school’s care counselor who helps students with personal challenges.
“It’s a long-standing tradition,” Provost said of Survivor Challenge. “The volunteer group is what makes it happen. It’s really nice that they can be able to support us like that.”
Regardless of how much money students’ families donated to the school, each student received a white T-shirt and colored bandannas because the school wanted for each student to participate in the obstacle course.
As of Friday morning, the event had raised at least $30,000, and school officials had not yet tallied all of the donations, Provost said.
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Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com
Twitter: @kellymcorrigan
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