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Profiling Jo-Anne Zapata, HHEF Advisory Board

Jo-Anne Zapata, a valued member of the newly formed HHEF Advisory Board, exemplifies partnership and community service. Born and raised in Horsham, and a 1965 graduate of Hatboro-Horsham High School, Ms. Zapata is the manager of the Horsham Days Inn and co-founder of the Greater Horsham Chamber of Commerce.

Energetic, enthusiastic, and self-deprecating, she has played a major role in bringing people together so they can give back to the community effectively. And she applauds those who do. Ms. Zapata is proud of the Chamber which has been working tirelessly to produce events and programs to bring business people and the community together. One recent initiative – and another way to promote community awareness – is the Horsham Chamber Nonprofit Roundtable, which helps nonprofit organizations, including HHEF, stay informed about each other, provides resources and joint project opportunities and helps them reach their goals more effectively.

Ms. Zapata supports HHEF, she said, because she firmly believes that our young people are the future of the community. “You can experience the world by staying in the community and growing a business,” she said. Through her work with HHEF, Zapata wants to “create awareness of its objectives and goals so that people want to help the school district’s kids, who in turn will be better community leaders someday.” She does so in a number of ways: serving as an advisor; assisting with advertising; providing free lodging to HHEF guests, most recently the entire Young@Heart troupe; and keeping Chamber of Commerce constituents informed about HHEF’s activities, thus bringing more support to our doors.

Ms. Zapata lives in the neighborhood where she was born, has five children, three living in the Hatboro-Horsham area, and four grandchildren. She is the proud recipient of the Rotary Club of Horsham’s 1999 Isaac J. “Ike” Jarrett Memorial Award. An asset to HHEF and to the Horsham community, we applaud all that she does.

HHEF New Directors Represent the Community-At-Large

Three area residents have joined the board of directors of the Hatboro-Horsham Educational Foundation, an independent organization partnered with the Hatboro-Horsham School District to enhance and enrich the classroom experience.

Elected to the board were Jim Knopf of Horsham, Jennifer Partelow of North Wales, and Kelley Winters of Horsham.

Jon Viscounte, second from left, president of the HHEF Board of Directors with new board members, from left, Jim Knopf, Jennifer Partelow, and Kelley Winters.

“We are thrilled to announce the addition of these three new board members,” said HHEF Executive Director Laurie Rosard. “They all have demonstrated a keen interest in supporting the mission of HHEF, as well as in enriching the educational experience of our students.”

Each of the new board members called HHEF’s work “vital.”

“I was impressed with what I saw HHEF doing in terms of community events, and wanted to help where I could,” said Knopf, whose background is in client relationship management and whose daughter is a 2009 Hatboro-Horsham High School graduate. “The work of HHEF is central to the success of the students in the district.”

Knopf pointed to the organization’s sponsorship of big-name speakers like oceanographer Robert Ballard, scientist Bill Nye and former first lady Barbara Bush.
“The programs afforded the students are unique and would not be in place if not for HHEF,” he said. “Working closely with the students and teachers makes this a win-win situation.”

Partelow, a 1988 Hatboro-Horsham graduate and co-owner of AB 8 Waste Solutions, learned of the foundation’s work after participating in a March 2009 HHEF initiative to have students collect and recycle plastic bottles in conjunction with a scheduled appearance by environmental photographer and eco-ambassador Chris Jordan.

“The more I became involved and the more I learned of HHEF’s grants and projects for students, teachers and the community, the more I wanted to do for the Foundation,” said Partelow, also a member of the Rotary Club of Central Bucks and the Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce.

Winters, who has been a member of the Hatboro-Horsham School Board since December, is the board’s representative to HHEF.

“I have always admired HHEF’s role and work,” said Winters, whose children this year were in 12th, 9th and 6th grades in the district. “Having a school board member on the Foundation’s board provides an additional layer of communication and involvement with the district.”

Winters said HHEF-backed events and programs touch all grade levels.

“HHEF awarded educational grants totaling close to $100,000 in 2009-10 and has plans to do so in the new school year,” she said.

Founded in 1987, HHEF’s mission is to secure funding from various sources to be used to enhance the education the district provides to the students. The nonprofit organization has funded numerous innovative programs that complement the district’s curriculum.

Hip Hop Dancers Teach and Engage Students

In March, HHEF brought Musicopia dancers from “Chosen Dance,” to present hip-hop dance workshops to students in the after-school program at all five of the district’s elementary schools. This month, students in the Life Skills classes are participating in another Musicopia program with musicians from “Spice Route” entitled “Middle East Music Exploration.”

For HHEF, the programs culminated a year of planning and coordination, working with Musicopia and the school district. The programs include teacher guides to be used in conjunction with musician workshops and performances. “Chosen Dance” presenters Clyde Evans and Alana Valentine provided an opportunity for the students to participate in an hour of hip-hop dance. “There’s a whole history to the dances we do, and that’s what we’re going to teach you today,” Mr. Evans told the students. “What’s important in hip-hop is what you bring to it.” In response, the kids brought a lot of energy, spontaneity and smiles, expressing themselves through popular hip-hop dances like “The Sponge Bob.”

Hatboro-Horsham Childcare Program Coordinator Jackie Barnhart praised the program as an alternative to the traditional classroom learning environment, because it got the kids engaged and gave them the opportunity to learn something about the diverse culture that surrounds them.

HHEF very much appreciates the efforts of Jean DiSabatino, the district’s curriculum director and an HHEF Board member who coordinated the programs with all the teachers involved, thus assuring a creative learning experience for our students.

Chosen Dance Duo teaches Hallowell
students hip hop after school.