FOUNDATION William C. Keese donates $10,000

By Kay Ray Executive Director

Bill Keese, Longview High School Class of 1970, has generously donated $10,000 to the Longview ISD Foundation, Inc. in memory of fellow classmates Sam Satterwhite and Jim Mobley. With this donation, Mr. Keese not only honors his late classmates, but he also supports today’s students and educators. Today’s students will receive the educational benefits Mr. Keese did during his years in LISD, and today’s educators will receive the same community support his teachers did.

This overwhelmingly generous donation has been designated for the Foundation’s best use; therefore, the Foundation board will use $5,000 of the donation to fund its three grant programs: the Great Rewards for Great Ideas Grant Program, the Campus Initiative Grant Program, and the John W. Harrison, Jr. Academic Grant Program. These three grant programs maximize the current academic programs of the Longview Independent School District, providing all students with enhanced learning opportunities above and beyond what the district offers.

To date, the Foundation has funded 770 grants through the Great Rewards for Great Ideas Grant Program, returning $827,092.75 to Longview ISD teachers, counselors, librarians, and nurses so that they can provide the best education possible for their students. These grants have funded programs and projects for students of all ability levels and in a variety of disciplines. In addition to strengthening academics, the grants have also funded projects in music, art, technology, character education, health and physical education, guidance and counseling, and STEAM education. Each day students in LISD benefit from the assistance the Foundation has provided their teachers so that they can expand the students’ educational opportunities.

In September 2007, the Longview ISD Foundation further enhanced education in Longview ISD by beginning a new grant program, the Campus Initiative Grant. To date, the Longview ISD Foundation has funded fifty Campus Ini- tiative Grants for a total of $152,625.68. The Foundation believes that this grant program, targeting overall campus improvement, complements the Foundation’s annual Great Rewards for Great Ideas Program.

In 2019, the Foundation began the John W. Harrison, Jr. Academic Field Trip Grant to honor the late John W. Harrison, Jr., longtime LISD school board member and dedicated financial supporter of the Foundation, with funding for $7,000 for fourth and fifth grade and middle school students. The Foundation has now funded fourteen academic field trip grants for a total of $61,733.74 to give students hands-on, real-world learning experiences that cannot be replicated in the classroom.

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