The 20 x 20 Campaign

Ask at least 20 of your friends to donate at least $20 to Mi Escuelita. $400 will match a low income parent's monthly tuition payment and keep their child in school at Mi Escuelita. Just cut and paste the paragraphs below into an email and you are on your way to changing a child's life forever.


I'm on a mission. My goal is to raise at least $20 from 20 friends today!

Mi Escuelita Preschool is an efficient, strong organization that teaches English to children of all cultures so they will excel in school and graduate from high school. In a time when high school dropout rates exceed 60% in Dallas, Mi Escuelita stands tall in the battle against illiteracy and educational mediocrity. It helps children overcome the language barrier and prepares them to succeed in school. Unfortunately, the economy has taken its toll on everyone and Mi Escuelita is no exception. Costs continue to increase while donations have declined. Classroom spots are empty as parents are challenged to pay even the lowest of tuition fees. Simply put, parents need scholarship assistance.

I am a strong supporter of Mi Escuelita's and I hope that you will join me by investing in this wonderful school. Mi Escuelita is making a dramatic impact on the lives of hundreds of children today. Will you partner with me to help them?

Please go to Donate to Mi Escuelita and to make your gift and help change a life.

Thank you so much.

Mi Escuelita Society is Hosting a Valentine's Social!

Fall in love with Mi Escuelita Tuesday, February 9 from 5:30pm to 7:30pm at Chocolate Secrets.

Network with other Dallas professionals who share your interest in making a positive impact in our community.

Find out how YOU can make a difference in the lives of children: volunteer to read your favorite children's stories over lunch, share your talent in the classroom, front office or on a special project, or make a financial commitment to help children at Mi Escuelita succeed.

$20 at the door gets you 2 gourmet chocolates, a glass of wine, coffee and tea, and 10% off all purchases from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. Proceeds will benefit the Carolyn Strickland Education Fund.

We look forward to seeing you Tuesday, February 9th!



Chocolate Secrets
3926 Oak Lawn Avenue
Dallas, TX 75219-4606
(214) 252-9801
map

Constant Contact User? Save Mi Escuelita Money!

Like many other companies, we use Constant Contact to keep our friends updated about what's going on at Mi Escuelita through emails. It's a service that we find very useful, and we'd like your help to get it for free!

Constant Contact has a program called Cares4Kids, where any paying customer of Constant Contact can sponsor any non-profit agency that meets the following criteria:

• Provides literacy, arts or educational programs for children or
• Helps children develop and promote entrepreneurial skills or
• Supports after-school programs

It looks like Mi Escuelita qualifies! Now we just need a sponsor. If your company uses Constant Contact, please considering sponsoring Mi Escuelita. It's an easy way to support us at no cost to you or your company. All it takes a short online form! Contact Jan Zeigler at jzeigler@miescuelita.org or Caroline Smiley at csmiley@miescuelita.org if you're interested.

For more information, check out their website here:  http://www.constantcontact.com/about-constant-contact/cares4kids.jsp

When Santa is spelled K P M G!

On Monday, December 7th the children at Mi Escuelita Preschool were treated to a visit by some very special volunteers as a part of KPMG’s Operation Bear Hug Program. KPMG employees stuffed bears, dressed them, and matched them with a children’s book. Then each bear with its book, a birth certificate, and a personal note was packed up and delivered to children at Mi Escuelita. In addition to being Santa’s helpers and giving a bear and book to each child, the KPMG employees read in the classrooms at Mi Escuelita’s Crossover site to celebrate the KPMG Family for Literacy Program. The children at Mi Escuelita were thrilled with their books and their bears and nap time that afternoon included lots of bear hugs.

The Mi Escuelita Society is Hosting a Halloween Happy Hour!

The Mi Escuelita Society is hosting a Halloween Happy Hour this Thursday, October 29 from 5:30 to 7:30 pm at the Stoneleigh Hotel.

Join us to support childhood education, learn more about Mi Escuelita and network with Dallas professionals. All while sipping Vampire Martinis.

Event Updates:
Complimentary Valet Parking
20% discount at Bolla Restaurant - come for drinks, stay for dinner.

RSVP using Evite.

We look forward to seeing you at this spooktacular event!

Dallas Cowboys Bring BIG Excitement to Mi Escuelita!

Mi Escuelita Preschool sites are normally full of excitement but the afternoon of Wednesday September 22 was marked by little giggles mixed with big laughs when the Dallas Cowboys Rookie Club visited the children at Mi Escuelita’s Crossover site. The size differences didn’t seem to matter as groups of the preschoolers practiced jumping jacks and raced back and forth between linebackers who stood in for end posts. Everyone had a good time and some budding young quarterbacks demonstrated some well practiced throwing skills – who knows by the time they are old enough to play in the big leagues the NFL might have some female quarterbacks.

The rookies who visited Mi Escuelita were:
#7 Stephen McGee
#18 David Buehler
#36 Mike Hamlin
#57 Victor Butler
#58 Jason Williams
#85 Kevin Ogletree
#89 John Phillips
#5 Ruby Carpenter
#33 Mike Mickens
#60 Travis Bright
#87 Manuel Johnson
#79 Robert Brewster
#55 Stephen Hodge
#59 Brandon Williams


A big THANKS to the Dallas Cowboys, the Rookie Club, and Rowdy for a great fun filled afternoon. Need something to make you feel good? Click below to see the fun and games.

New Website Launched

Photo credit: Clarissa Brockway

This summer, ExxonMobil selected Mi Escuelita and other nonprofit organizations in Dallas for their Community Summer Job Program. ExxonMobil granted each organization money in order to hire an intern for the summer. Mi Escuelita chose to find an intern to completely redesign and rebuild their website.

After reviewing several applicants, Mi Escuelita chose Clarissa Brockway, a senior Arts and Technology major at the University of Texas at Dallas with seven years of web design experience.

"I knew this was the job for me right away. Not only was I going to be doing what I love, but I was also going to do it for an incredible organization," Brockway said.

Over the course of eight weeks, Brockway worked closely with Mi Escuelita employees to determine what would need to be changed on the website.

"We felt it needed a complete redesign that would make it visually appealing, better organized, easier to update, and more informative," Brockway said.

After presenting and reworking several designs, the Mi Escuelita site went live on September 9, 2009. The site features drop-down menus that allow for multiple pages divided into categories, more photos of the children, and a clean, browser-friendly design.

"It was important to me that we make the site accessible to as many people as possible. It would be a shame to miss out on a donation or a volunteer because he or she couldn't figure out or load the site," Brockway said.

The completed site is now available to be viewed at www.miescuelita.org and will see several changes throughout its lifetime. As more content is received, the site will be updated and improved by both the Mi Escuelita staff and Brockway, who could not bear to leave behind what she calls the most rewarding experience of her life.