FULLERTON : Schools Receive Gifts of Money and Supplies

The school year has barely started, and Fullerton School District officials have received numerous gifts of money and goods for district employees and students.

Among the donations received this week were a set of encyclopedias valued at $200, $1,200 for an air-conditioning fund, about 7,000 note pads, a school sign valued at $2,880, computer equipment valued at $1,800 and $600 worth of stick-on note pads.

In addition, all Raymond Elementary School students--more than 600--received new backpacks stuffed with notebooks, pencils, markers, paper, crayons and glue sticks.

The backpacks were donated by the local Staples store.

Jeffrey Pearl, a former Fullerton resident who recently moved out of state, donated the encyclopedias for Golden Hill Elementary School.

Beckman Instruments Inc., James and Gloria Hill and Yokohama Tire Corp. contributed the money for the air conditioning for Pacific Drive Elementary School.

The Parks Junior High School’s Parent Teacher Student Assn. and the student council bought the sign for their school.

The computer equipment came from the Orange County-Los Angeles County Technology Consortium, and Day Runner Inc. gave the district the 7,000 note pads.

Last year, donations for the district’s schools totaled more than $100,000, district officials said.

If donors continue to contribute as they have so far this year, donations are expected to top that amount by the end of the school year, school board President Robert C. Fisler said.

“I think it’s great that people give to our schools,” he said. “It proves that there’s money there if you have a good cause, and I think we have the best cause on earth: education.”