This content was published: November 24, 1997. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
PCC Foundation Supports Kicker Campaign: "The Money is Coming, How Much Can You Spare?"
Photos and story by Mark Evertz
The Portland Community College Foundation and other school and college foundations from across the state are encouraging members of the community to donate some or all of the surplus tax checks, called the kicker, to public schools. The checks were mailed out by the state of Oregon, and people received them this past weekend.
The state’s healthy economy generated a surplus of $635 million in tax revenues beyond budget projections. Dan Moriarty, president of Portland Community College, said, "The economy is in excellent health, yet our schools are suffering. For five years, K-12 schools and higher education in Oregon have struggled with decreased funding and hard choices. Citizens and businesses from across Oregon urged the Legislature to invest the surplus in the state’s schools. But they decided to instead return the $635 million back to tax payers. It is up to individuals from communities across the state to decide to invest this windfall in education."
"The goals of the Portland Community College Foundation are to first serve needy students and then to provide technology resources for our classrooms and student labs," said Jan Coulton, executive director of the PCC Foundation. "We are working hard to keep college affordable and accessible to citizens and maintain high quality. We hope that community college supporters will donate some of their tax check to help students at PCC."
The PCC Foundation is working with the Portland Public Schools Foundation and other Oregon school foundations to let people know that "The money is coming," – and to ask, "How much can you spare?"
Donations can be earmarked for a wide variety of PCC Foundation scholarships, for the general scholarship fund, or for specific fundraising initiatives, such as technology.
Donations can be made to the PCC Foundation, P.O. Box 19000, Portland, OR 97280-0990. For more information about how to help PCC students, please call 977-4374.