Prattville, AL’s Foundation for Success
Here, education and community work together to help students.
For Prattville and Autauga County, education is a community effort.
Organizations from across diverse industries work together to ensure that local students have access to caring teachers, modern resources and state-of-the-art facilities.
The Autauga Education Foundation (AEF) is the center of collaboration when it comes to public education. With a mission to provide sustainable resources and build community support, AEF seeks to ensure academic excellence and strong character development in Autauga County Schools.
‘Honor to be Asked’
Bob Gipson was asked to serve as an AEF board member 12 years ago. At the time, his family owned Gipson’s Tire Pros, which they sold two years ago. Now, Gipson sells real estate with RE/MAX Cornerstone Plus.
“A lot of mentors in my life were on the board at the time,” Gipson says. “It was an honor to be asked, and my participation has not disappointed. In fact, it’s done as much for me as I’ve done for it. I’ve met some amazing people, not only on the board, but within the educational system.”
Connecting with in-the-trenches teachers helped the organization focus on the school system’s biggest needs.
“We’ve always done a phenomenal job of fundraising to serve the education system in our county,” Gipson says. “Five years ago, we decided to channel our resources directly into the classroom to fund teacher grants. We set up a system for teachers to apply through our website, and we fund as many as we can, as much as we can.”
Gipson feels that just as important as the funding is the awareness AEF brings to classroom needs. Some organizations have been so impressed with what AEF has accomplished that they have asked to sponsor grants through AEF who they trust with the process.
“It’s important for people to know the needs are there,” Gipson says. “And it’s up to everyone’s individual heart to help out. If there’s a specialty area they’d like to fund, such as STEM, we’re happy to facilitate that.”
Recognizing Teachers
This community effort to support all county schools helps decrease disparity in funding. AEF gets everyone involved and ensures that smaller schools are equally represented. They even offer a payroll deduction program for teachers to contribute.
“It says a lot about the educators in our community that they are willing to give back,” Gipson says.
One of AEF’s initiatives is the recognition of hardworking teachers through the Teacher of the Year Celebration, which honors the best elementary, middle school and high school teachers in the county. Shannon Murphree, a U.S. history teacher with 26 years of experience, was named Secondary Teacher of the Year for Autauga County Schools in 2021. After being nominated for this distinction by a peer, she answered questions about her teaching methods and goals, was vetted by a panel and named not only Teacher of the Year for her school, but for the county overall.
“This accolade from the Autauga Education Foundation is especially meaningful to me,” Murphree says. “It is confirmation that the work all teachers strive to do each day does not go unnoticed. Most of us feel called to be teachers, and our students remind us daily why we continue to answer that call. But knowing that community members from various professional backgrounds see the labor it takes to bring the goals to fruition is both affirming and encouraging.”
In addition to recognizing exemplary teachers, AEF takes on a number of needs, including spearheading funding to enhance educational programs and student experiences. AEF has purchased practice medical equipment for the health science internship at Autauga County Technology Center, provided international flags for Pine Level Elementary’s International Day and advanced the STEM curriculum at Prattville Primary, among many other efforts.
The foundation has provided scholarships to student leaders, collected supplies for local students and provided relief items to tornado victims.
Gipson says this is what makes Autauga County such a special place to live.
“I’m a product of the public school system in this community, so, to me, it’s not abnormal to have this type of support,” he says. “But when I meet people from across the nation, it’s clear not all communities are involved in their school system. I’m so grateful and proud that I was raised here.”
Before- and After-School Programs
Also supporting students and their families is the Prattville YMCA. In addition to assisting working parents by offering programs before and after school, the organization helps combat the rising cost of child care by providing financial assistance to eligible families. Working with Autauga County Schools, the YMCA offers after-school care on four campuses – Prattville Kindergarten, Prattville Primary, Daniel Pratt Elementary and Pine Level Elementary.
The YMCA also hosts after-school care at the main Don M. Smith Branch YMCA on East Main Street. In total, the organization cares for about 400 children after school. Activities at the after-school sessions include homework help, games and playing on the playgrounds, all in supervised environments.
“As for before school, everything takes place at our Willis Bradford Branch YMCA on McQueen Smith Road, with doors opening at 6 a.m.,” says David Lewis, Prattville YMCA general director and CEO. “We then bus every child to their individual schools that are within the city limits of Prattville.”
There is a weekly fee for the before- and after-school programs, and prices vary for YMCA members and nonmembers. The organization also has a “Coach a Child” fund that provides financial assistance for families that have difficulty paying for the programs, and nobody gets turned away.
“The Prattville YMCA is also one of the largest employers of young people in Autauga County,” Lewis says. “We hire many high school and college students to be on our staff to assist with after-school and summer day camp programs.”
The Prattville YMCA launched a summer learning program in 2023 for children who need additional help with reading and mathematics.
“Children do their summer learning at schools in the morning, then they come to the Y in the afternoon, where they learn to swim and be safe around water,” he says. “We enjoy doing whatever we can to be a vital part of the Prattville/Autauga County community.”
Kevin Litwin contributed to this piece.
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