In March, longtime Santa Maria residents Dorothy and Mark Smith donated a new 2009 Dodge Caravan to the Santa Maria-Bonita School District’s Special Education Department.
The van will be used for the severely handicapped students’ community-based instructional program, which develops students’ functional skills and fosters independence at school and within the community by taking them to outings at local restaurants and stores. Nearly 50 severely handicapped students take these learning excursions around town during the year, according to the district’s monthly newsletter. In past years, students have had to share older vans with the district’s maintenance department.
The donation came as a welcome surprise for the department, which, like most educational programs, is facing financial problems because of cuts in state funding.
“We appreciate the Smiths’ extremely generous donation,” district Superintendent Phil Alvarado said in a newsletter. “Special Education does not receive sufficient funding from the state, so it’s difficult for the district to find money for big-ticket items like a new van.”
School Scene is compiled by Staff Writer Amy Asman. Information should be sent to the Sun via fax, e-mail, or mail.
This article appears in Apr 30 – May 7, 2009.