The Stand Up for Justice Educator Fund is rewarding educators for their role in teaching their students important lessons about respect, kindness, and empathy. The fund is a major push to combat bullying and bigotry in the Central Bucks School District and beyond.
Stand Up For Justice was created by Heather Reynolds and Shana Trichon, who both have children in the district, in response to turmoil in CBSD. Their goal is to recognize and be a resource to educators who foster themes of acceptance and kindness in their curriculum.
“In order to truly make a difference, this was so wonderful because it actually incorporated things that the teachers and educators were already doing, or encouraged them to do more and go above and beyond, and then also provides a resource for others to emulate and be able to kind of take it and run with it,” said Reynolds, who was elected as a school board member in November.
Teachers, guidance counselors, school librarians, administrators, and more can all make an impact on students’ lives and are eligible for the educator fund. In the two years since its inception, Stand Up For Justice has recognized 11 educators and administrators.
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Allison Levin, an educator at Central Bucks West High School, and Jared Hottenstein, a fifth-grade teacher at Jamison Elementary, are the fund’s 2024 winners. Tohickon Middle School teacher Bridget Fox was awarded Second Place and CBSD Education Services Center’s Angela Hendershot and Holicong Middle School teacher Kristy Trammell were awarded Third Place for their invaluable contributions to the district.
Levin, a fine arts instructor and Jewish Student Union advisor, received three nominations.
Levin’s application detailed her plan for collaboration between JSU and the Muslim Student Association to ease tensions that mounted between the groups. The result was an event called the JSU/MSA Interfaith Event: Cultural Connections. The students put together a presentation sharing the differences and similarities in culture and tradition between Judaism and Islam.
“It was her thought, it was her way and that is completely reflective of who she is as a person and as an educator,” Trichon said.
Educators can be nominated or submit an application on their own to showcase how they cultivated lesson plans and projects that teach their students understanding and respect. Hottenstein applied after hearing about the fund from a representative who saw Reynolds and Trichon’s presentation during a teachers’ union meeting.
“Doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it was kind of a big deal because we want more people to feel like they just need to apply,” Reynolds said. “You don’t have to be nominated.”
Hottenstein is the educator fund’s second winner. He and the fifth-grade team at Jamison worked to have their students practice the social-emotional learning skills they are taught with the Kindness Crew.
In his application, Hottenstein explains how the Kindness Crew visits The Bridges, an assisted living facility, throughout the year. The students play Bingo with residents, set up a Halloween parade, hold a Memorial Day picnic, and do a number of other activities with the residents throughout the year.
Reynolds, a school board member, was able to see Hottenstein highlighted at a meeting for his work and impact on his students.
“A couple of the kids, in his statement, he talked about they continued this work going and visiting the people there in the summer because they had built such a connection with them,” Reynolds said.
Hottenstein tells stories of fifth graders visiting The Bridges on Christmas Eve, writing letters to residents, and reaching out to autistic students.
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“That is actually one of the rubric boxes, is the student impact,” Trichon said. “It is a necessary part of the process.”
This is the second year the judges have deliberated and come up with two winners. The judges include a retired elementary school teacher, middle school teacher, and Shana’s mother, a retired high school teacher and creator of the Stand Up For Justice Grant in Florida.
Reynolds and Trichon put their heads together to come up with an idea for positive change in the district and Trichon had a light bulb moment, she said.
“So I was talking with my mother … and she was like, ‘Shana, why don’t you bring Stand Up up there,’” Trichon said.
Trichon’s mother created the Stand Up For Justice Educator Grant after witnessing an anti-semitic incident at her school district in Collier County, Florida.
The educator grant is funded by the Jewish Federation of Greater Naples and has been running for 14 years. The educator fund differs in that it is a non-profit receiving its funding through donations and so far has awarded $6,000 in the two years since its inception. The goal for Reynolds and Trichon is to expand Stand Up for Justice beyond Central Bucks.
“That’s our macro goal is to grow this and put it into other school districts,” Trichon said.
Reynolds and Trichon approached the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia for funding support similar to the educator grant in Florida. The federation couldn’t help with the grant but offered up a donation which kicked the fund into gear.
Reynolds said it wasn’t guaranteed that the Jewish Federation would support the fund moving forward, but the donation was the start the fund needed.
“It was the kick in the pants, for lack of a better, but to help us say, ‘okay, you know what we’re doing it,’” Reynolds said.
From there Reynolds and Trichon reached out to friends and family to raise money and get the word out while going through Desis of Doylestown, a non-profit for social change. After seeing how well received the fund was after the first year, Reynolds and Trichon decided to make Stand Up for Justice its own 501(c)(3), they said.
“It was very well received that first year,” Trichon said. “We had seven nominations, six applications, and four winners.”
Trichon said they held a small happy hour celebration for the winners that first year. In its second year, SUFJ partnered with Stage United for the fund’s first fundraiser, “Band Together for a Cause.” The fundraiser featured bands connected to CBSD: Pajammies, DT Outliers, and Class Act. The fundraiser also held an award ceremony for the 2024 winners.
Trichon described the event as “so rewarding” and now the co-founders are gearing up for next year. They’ve had help revamping their website and are looking for businesses to sponsor the top three prizes.
Reynolds and Trichon say they’re looking to set up booths at community events, have the winners share their lesson plans at talks, and continue with the fundraiser.
“We want to make sure people know about it so they’re able to nominate the teachers that they feel are doing this work or the educators,” Reynolds said. “So, being embedded in the community like that is important.”
Reynolds and Trichon said they feel very fortunate and that the process has been rewarding on their end as well. The co-founders said they were looking for a way to make a positive impact and now are looking to grow their impact.
“It’s like pulling flowers out and replanting them, you know, so it’s amazing,” Trichon said.
