Wednesday March 13, 2013

WILLIAMSTOWN -- On Thursday, March 14, the SEE Fund will host a student Quiz Bowl at Mt. Greylock School, akin to the popular TV game show "As Schools Match Wits." The competition will be will be broadcast live from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on channel 16 (WilliNet) in Williamstown and then again on March 20 in Lanesborough.

This event is meant to highlight students and student learning, and to serve as a fundraiser for educational initiatives at the school. SEE Fund Chair, John Gerry explains that, "this will be the fourth annual SEE Fund telethon with the main feature being the academic trivia contest. We will have as many as 27 students involved in the game and that will make it really fun for everybody, including those who watch from home."

Blair Dils, a faculty member and coach of the Mt. Greylock "As Schools Match Wits" team, will emcee the Quiz Bowl. Dils and other Mt. Greylock faculty will compose questions in the categories of humanities, science and math, sports and health, and pop culture. For each category there will be two teams of three students, and one segment of the contest will pit the Mt. Greylock "As Schools Match Wits" team against a team of faculty members.

While the game is underway, another cadre of student volunteers will be talking by phone with families and friends of MGRHS to ask for their financial support. The student leaders for the event are Sean Houston, Alexandra

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Delano, and Zach Harrington, who are all members of the SEE Fund Board of Governors. The Board hopes to raise $5,000 - funds that will support future grants for programs at Mt. Greylock that are not covered by the regular school budget. Gerry notes that "the SEE Fund is very fortunate to have WilliNet as a partner in this production. This is a great example of two community organizations working together to enhance a vital community resource - the school."

The SEE (Sustaining Educational Excellence) Fund was established in 1996 as the first non-profit educational endowment in Berkshire County. It is managed by the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation and governed by a volunteer board of students, faculty, staff, parents, and friends of the Mt. Greylock Regional school. The Fund has distributed over $170,000 in small grants to provide extra educational opportunities for students and teachers. Projects that have received funding recently include environmental science field trips; bullying prevention workshops; school visits from authors and musicians; diversity leadership training; professional development for faculty and staff; sports and health educations workshops.

All members of the Mt. Greylock School community (faculty, staff, students, parents, and friends) are eligible to apply for SEE Fund grants. The application deadline this year is April 15 and the application is available online at berkshiretaconic.org.

For more information: jgerry41@yahoo.com, 413-458-9106.