THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 9, 1994 TAG: 9410070320
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ALLISON T. WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 66 lines
SHINY, RED APPLES in hand and gleaming saucepans atop their heads, more than 100 Nansemond Parkway Elementary School kindergarteners last Friday paraded through corridors singing praises of the fruit they carried.
And at the head of the line was a boisterous, barefoot Quentin Goodwin. Slinging a burlap sack filled with apples over his shoulder, the Allied Colloids Inc. contract coordinator burst into a cheery chorus.
Dressing up as Johnny Appleseed is just one way Goodwin has represented Allied Colloids in Suffolk Public Schools' School-Business Partnership Program over the past two years.
Allied is one of three founding business partners that helped get Suffolk's partnership program off the ground in 1982, said Bethanne Bradshaw, spokesman for the school system.
Nowadays, the program boasts more than 60 businesses and organizations in partnerships with the city's 15 public schools.
According to Bradshaw, the partnership program pairs businesses willing to volunteer their resources with schools throughout the city. The two work together on projects designed to raise student self-esteem and strengthen academic performance.
``The partnership concept has caught hold and become a national trend in recent years,'' Bradshaw said.
But the more immediate benefits are reaped at home, agree Suffolk educators.
``We read stories about Johnnie Appleseed and we studied apples in class,'' said Celia Broady, kindergarten teacher at Nansemond Parkway. ``But having this gentleman come in dressed up like the character and lead them in hands-on activities made it more real for these children.''
At Mount Zion Elementary School, employees from the Bank of Suffolk tutor students every day. Edward Carter, the school's principal, is confident the tutorials will give more students skills needed to pass the Literacy Passport Test in sixth grade.
``Teachers have said they see a difference in the self-image a lot of these youngsters have,'' Carter said. ``Many of the benefits are intangibles we won't be able to see until down the road by looking at the contributions they make to society.''
Taking an active role in educating children also benefits the business world, added Carter.
``Assisting with these partnerships is a way the business community can get more bang for its buck,'' Carter said. ``Education is a cooperative effort between the school, home and community.''
Volunteers also get a sense of personal satisfaction from the partnerships, Goodwin said.
``I personally do this because I enjoy working with children . . . and I like to see them brought up right,'' Goodwin said. ``I think Allied Colloids' partnership with Nansemond Parkway is the company's way of showing it cares for the community.
``These kids are our future,'' he said. ``We want to encourage them to learn as much as possible and help them grow up to be good citizens.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JOHN H. SHEALLY II
Teacher Debbie Devine works with student Clark Daugherty and Bank of
Suffolk employee Margaret Powell in the School-Business Partnership
Program at Mount Zion Elementary. by CNB