Organizer seeks to expand student-assistance program

A Round Lake Park organization that has collected thousands of dollars worth of school supplies for needy students wants to expand.

Village Trustee Ken Schnur, who created and leads the Adopt a Classroom effort, is taking steps to turn the group into an official, tax-exempt charitable organization.

He's also trying to increase the program's good deeds by creating need-based scholarships for Round Lake Area Unit District 116 students headed to college or trade school.

With approval needed from state and federal agencies, Schnur hopes the new organization -- to be called Adopt a Classroom and More -- will be ready by December or January.

Launched in 2001, the Adopt a Classroom program annually buys about $700 or $800 worth of pens, pencils, paper and other school supplies for students whose families can't afford them, Schnur said. That doesn't include the donations of actual supplies the group receives from community members, he said.

A student's supplies for a year could cost $30 to $300, depending on the grade level.

"Each year, it gets a little more expensive," Schnur said.

Schnur was inspired to start the effort by his own childhood experiences.

"I came from a very poor family," he said. "I know the struggles. I know about going to school only with the clothes on my back."

Schnur recognized other families' needs when he moved to the Round Lake area.

"That child can't excel …. without the proper tools to use in school," he said.

A contact within the school district notifies Schnur when supplies are needed, and he delivers. The group does not donate supplies to specific students, he said.

The scholarship program he's proposed would target specific students, however. Schnur will seek corporate sponsors to fund the grants.

Five other local community leaders have agreed to form a board for the nonprofit group if it's granted tax-exempt status.

They are: Round Lake Park Trustee Kathy Pender; Round Lake Beach Trustee Judy Armstrong; Round Lake Park Police Chief George Filenko; District 116 Chief Executive Officer Ben Martindale; and Mary Robinson, a Hainesville resident who, like Schnur, drives a school bus in District 116.

Even though the group has not yet been granted tax-exempt status, it is taking donations. They can be sent to Schnur at the Round Lake Park village hall, 203 E. Lake Shore Drive, Round Lake Park, IL., 60073.

For more information you can call Schnur at (847) 975-5571.