Local

On February 24, the Reverend Bill Harris spoke to the Sauk Prairie Optimists about the People Helping People (PHP) organization, based in Baraboo. PHP was founded in 1998 as a faith-based non-profit charity whose mission is “to strengthen our community by giving direct help to low-income families and disadvantaged job seekers.” PHP provides families with food, children’s clothing, and school supplies throughout the year, and provides free career training and personal mentoring to people who have the most difficulty getting jobs and staying employed, including incarcerated individuals or those newly-released. PHP’s newest endeavor, the Career Development Program, is now up and running. This program offers free entry-level training in the skill trades to low-income adults, which can lead to apprenticeships in the trades and new career path. Through mentorship and relationships, as well as requiring members to adhere to a Code of Conduct and work toward goals, the cycle of low-paying jobs can be broken. As Reverend Harris energetically states “Community means we all need help, and we all need to help.” PHP is always looking for volunteers. They can be contacted at 608-434-0002 or php123@centurylink.net.

On March 4th, Eric Brehm, a Sauk Prairie High School teacher in the At Risk and Alternative Education Program, spoke to the Sauk Prairie Optimist Club. This program is designed for students who don’t qualify for Special Ed services but would benefit from assistance in meeting the goal of graduating from high school. Without the Alt Ed Program, these students might fall through the cracks. The goal for every student in the Alt Ed Program is to graduate from high school. Most Sauk Prairie School District students graduate with 24 credits; the minimum number of credits to graduate is 15. Without a high school diploma, Brehm states, “a lot of doors are closed to kids. I tell them that with a diploma, you have a lot more options in life.” The Alt Ed Program allows students to experience success in school, which gives an incentive to reach that 15 credit threshold. There are multiple programs available to students from Eagle Academy to teach study skills, Online Education, Back on Track to help students who barely fail a course to quickly recover those credits, and the COMPs Program for credit-deficient seniors. COMPs students must have 7.5 credits in core subjects to be eligible for the program, which allows them to earn the remaining 7.5 credits by demonstrating competencies in subjects in non-traditional classroom setting. The COMPs program has been very successful in helping students meet graduation requirements. At Risk and Alternative Education teacher Eric Brehm, left, with Optimist Member Jane Rasico-Hoffman at the March 4 Sauk Prairie Optimist Club meeting.

At the February 25th Sauk Prairie Optimist Club meeting, Kelly Petrowski, at left, Principal of Tower Rock Elementary School, received a $500 check from Carol May, at right, Optimist President. The money will be used to support the Soar program, which provides after school care/learning until 5 p.m.

On February 25, Optimist President Carol May, left, presented a $400 check to Bethany Hultgren, Youth Services Librarian at Ruth Culver Community Library. The funds will be used in the library’s summer programming.