TEP’s Senior Superlatives
It’s hard to believe that The Education Partnership is celebrating its 17th birthday! If TEP were a student in our program, we’d officially be in our senior year of high school! To mark this milestone, we’re honoring the people and programs that make our work possible with a set of “senior superlatives,” celebrating the very best of our TEP community.
Most Reliable: Honor Roll Monthly Donors
Our Honor Roll monthly donors are some of the most dedicated champions of our mission. Their consistent generosity allows us to plan ahead, respond to immediate needs, and create lasting impact for teachers and students alike.
One Honor Roll supporter perfectly captured the spirit of monthly giving, sharing:
“Ever since I was first introduced to TEP over 10 years ago, I was immediately sold on their mission to provide school supplies to some of the most vulnerable populations in our area. These are more than just pencils and papers to these kids; they represent dignity and opportunity. Being an honor roll member is my way to ensure I can support this critical mission year-round, not just when school supply shopping is top of mind. These students and teachers deserve the best opportunity to succeed, and I don’t ever want a lack of resources to be an obstacle to getting there.”
We are deeply grateful for these donors who show up month after month to help make essential changes in classrooms across our region. Click here to join our honor roll today!
Best Group Project: Community Partnerships
TEP’s impact is amplified through a powerful network of passionate community partners who support every aspect of our work and mission.
Our logistics partners, including Pitt Ohio and Amazon, ensure we constantly receive key supplies for our programs. We also collaborate with nonprofit partners such as Matt’s Maker Space, Farina Foundation, Global Links, Beverly’s Birthdays, and World Vision, allowing us to share resources and extend our collective reach.
Click here to view the full list of community partners.
We are especially proud of our long-term Adopt-A-School partners, including Guardian Storage, American Eagle, Alpha Residential, Walsh Construction, and many more! During a recent distribution at Pittsburgh Minadeo PreK–5, we realized Guardian Storage’s partnership with the school is longer than many of the students have been alive! Even more powerful, kindergarten students who were adopted in the program’s first year are now entering high school. That’s the kind of prolonged, life-changing impact community partnerships can create.
This is just a small snapshot of our incredible collaborators. For a full list of our corporate partners, please visit this link.
Most Improved: Program Growth
Each year, TEP continues to grow and evolve to better serve teachers and students. What began as a small Teacher Resource Center has expanded into a robust collection of programs designed to remove barriers to learning.
Over the years, we’ve added hands-on initiatives like our Adopt-A-School Program and STEAM programming. In our 17th year, the Adopt-A-School Program is on track to serve 49 schools and counting! Our music distribution program has also expanded, now offering monthly distributions in the Teacher Resource Center thanks to the dedication and support of the Farina Foundation.
Most Helpful: Volunteers
Our work would not be possible without the incredible support from our volunteers. From corporate teams to workforce development partners, volunteers help our programs reach their full potential.
Partners like BNY and PNC not only contribute their time and talent but also multiply their impact through financial contributions tied to employee volunteer hours, effectively doubling their support.
We are also grateful for workforce programs such as Saint Anthony’s, Pittsburgh Conroy, BCRC, LifeSteps, and ACTES. These groups visit TEP to build essential life and job-readiness skills like collaboration, communication, and teamwork while making a meaningful contribution to our mission.
Interested in getting involved? Visit our volunteer page to learn more.
Class MVPs: Teachers
Teachers are the heart of everything we do. While TEP provides the supplies, educators transform those resources into meaningful learning experiences for students.
A recent moment perfectly illustrates this creativity: a teacher shared how she used gum from the Teacher Resource Center to build an entire lesson on descriptive language and adjectives. Through this hands-on activity, students learned an important language skill while enjoying a fun and memorable treat.
This is just one of countless examples of how teachers maximize resources to make a difference every day. Thank you to all the educators we serve for your creativity, dedication, and unwavering commitment to students in our community.
Author: The TEP Team
