AUGUST 26, 2008 –
U.S. Education Dept. official attends Sharefest celebration
Kristine Cohn, the U.S. Secretary of Education's Regional Representative for Region V, has accepted an invitation to speak at the Sharefest Celebration at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, August 27, at Flinn Middle School.
Rockford school officials asked Cohn to participate in the celebration as a way to honor volunteers for their hard work, help keep momentum high for Sharefest and draw recognition for the annual school makeover project organized by Heartland Community Church. Cohn is a former chairman of the Winnebago County Board.
Flinn, Stiles Elementary School and East High School received summer makeovers during Heartland’s second annual Sharefest. About 3,700 volunteers from Heartland and other Rockford congregations spent an estimated 30,000 hours painting classrooms, installing new window blinds, carpeting and ceiling fans and making numerous other improvements and repairs.
Heartland is sponsoring the Sharefest Celebration with a Back-to-School picnic at 5:30 p.m., formal remarks at 6:30 p.m. and student-led tours beginning at 7:15 p.m. at Flinn, 2525 Ohio Parkway, where hallway lockers were repainted and the auditorium received a facelift. Several hundred students, parents, teachers and volunteers are expected to turn out for the event.
"Sharefest has done a tremendous amount of repair and remodeling work in Rockford schools this summer,” Cohn said. “Students and teachers in the Rockford Public Schools are very fortunate to have many active community partners who know the value of public education and positive learning environments."
Superintendent of Schools Linda Hernandez, State Senator Dave Syverson, and Rockford Mayor Larry Morrissey are scheduled to share the stage with Cohn and Heartland Directional Leader Mark Bankord, who will present the Sharefest 2008 video illustrating the remodeling projects at all three schools. |
