Running Fox PTO Sets Sights on Smartboards with Matching Support

By Emily Bontrager

The Running Fox Elementary PTO is raising funds to purchase smartboards for the elementary classrooms this year. Each year the PTO puts on a Monster Garage Sale fundraiser. This year’s garage sale will be held on Saturday, April 25, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the Running Fox Gym. A bake sale will also be held during the event.

PTO chairperson Teri Hooper said the garage sale has supported several school projects in recent years. Funds previously helped rebuild the PTO account after purchasing playground equipment, and last year’s sale, with help from the Masons, contributed to the Outdoor Classroom and Walking Path project.

This year’s focus is purchasing smartboards.

“Roughly five years ago, Running Fox teachers had put in a request to the superintendent to purchase smartboards for each classroom. The request was denied due to lack of funds,” Hooper explained.

“Instead, Smart TVs were purchased, at a fraction of the cost of what a smartboard costs. Although the TVs were much cheaper, they also have limited the teachers to what they are able to do in their classroom.”

About a month ago, the PTO formed a subcommittee of teachers to research smartboard options. Working with a company called Bluum, the group reviewed several brands and received a demonstration board to test.

“We chose the Newline brand smartboard, as the boards are mounted on wheeled stands so they would be able to be moved around the school, and are also considered nearly indestructible,” Hooper said.

Teachers quickly began using the board for activities such as math relays, presentations on “The 3 R’s – Reduce, Reuse & Recycle,” and interactive study games like Jeopardy.

“The board also has apps that can be utilized, making the learning possibilities endless,” Hooper said, noting teachers can still show YouTube videos just as they do on current TVs.

Because students and staff enjoyed the demonstration board so much, the PTO purchased it for the school. For now, it will be shared among the music, library, PE, STEM and art teachers.

“Our hope is to purchase eight more boards, one for each classroom, so teachers won’t have to share and can use them daily,” Hooper said. “The eight boards will cost us $18,480. We’re writing grants and are hopeful between grants and fundraising to get the boards 100% paid for so they can be available for the 2026– 2027 school year.”

Additional support is coming from Kahoka Chapter #40, Order of the Eastern Star, which is working with the PTO through the Masonic Home of Missouri’s Creating- A-Partnership (CAP) Program. While the fundraiser is organized by the PTO, the partnership allows proceeds to be matched, tripling the total raised. For every $1 raised locally, the Masonic Home contributes $2, increasing the impact toward the smartboard goal.

The Monster Garage Sale operates a little differently than most.

“Nothing is priced. You shop, come to our check-out table, and we shoot you a dollar figure based on what you have,” Hooper said. “We’re happy to haggle with you, if necessary, which kind of adds to the fun of the Monster Garage Sale.”

Garage sale item donations are welcomed and can be dropped off Monday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or Friday from 8:00 a.m. to noon at Clark County Farm Bureau Insurance. Items can also be dropped off at the Running Fox Gym on Friday, April 24, from 3:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

“This is the third year the Clark County Farm Bureau has allowed their insurance office to be a drop-off location, and we couldn’t be more thankful,” Hooper said.

“We’ll take nearly anything. However, we also appreciate it if you don’t donate dirty or broken items.”

Hooper said donations have increased each year, filling a 16-foot covered trailer borrowed from TNT Truckn’. After the sale, leftover items are donated to several organizations, including the Acts 2:45 Closet in Keokuk, the St. Paul Backpack Ministry and other local groups.

“The only way our students can be successful is if our community supports them in their educational efforts,” Hooper said. “Especially in rural areas where funds are often limited, community support at events like the Monster Garage Sale help the PTO to provide some much-needed supplemental items for students.”

The Running Fox PTO encourages the community to attend the sale to help reach the goal of purchasing classroom smartboards.

The Running Fox PTO wants to thank the community for always being so supportive of the Monster Garage Sale.

“The Monster Garage Sale itself would not be possible without the community donating the items for it,” Hooper said.

The Running Fox School is located at 27192 U.S. Highway 61, Alexandria, MO. For more information about the Monster Garage Sale, contact Teri Hooper at 217- 430-0146. If you are involved in a local organization that could benefit from the leftover garage sale items, please contact Teri.