by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Aug 1, 2025 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) helps support education in a variety of ways, including grants from donor advised funds. The Arthur and Millicent Gabriel Legacy Fund, Idea Fund, and Patricia and Robert Metz Educational Fund are currently accepting grant requests to support local schools in the 2025-2026 school year. Applications are due by October 1 through CFFC’s online grant system: https://bit.ly/cffcapplynow
The Arthur and Millicent Gabriel Legacy Fund is accepting grant requests from $750 up to $10,000 to be considered for reusable education items to enhance the classroom. Any teacher, school counselor, or administrator in the Laurel Highlands School District or Uniontown Area School District is encouraged to apply.
The Idea Fund was created by a donor who strives to help teachers to achieve a level of creativity in the classroom that allows all students to succeed. All school districts in Fayette County are eligible to apply for an Idea Fund grant in the amount of $2,500.
The Patricia and Robert Metz Educational Fund is accepting grant requests from Uniontown Area School District’s middle schools or high school to enhance STEM teaching and learning. An award of $500 is intended to support teacher or student activities or the purchase of classroom materials.
“It’s always great to see the variety and creativity in the fall grant requests, and we’re happy to help connect our donors with those projects,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
Last fall, these donor advised funds at CFFC awarded a total of $25,934 to support the purchase of LEGO® education kits, whiteboard and lab tables, library collections, technology, science equipment, and more.
Further details about the grant applications and previous grant awards can be found at www.cffayettepa.org.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jul 14, 2025 | Building a Stronger Fayette
photo courtesy of Albert Gallatin Area School District
“The Drone Coding Curriculum is tailored for students in grades six through eight and gives students hands-on experiences building, programming, and flying real drones,” explained Jacob Magerko, STEM Teacher at Albert Gallatin South Middle School.
Students work together and use block coding to program a drone to take off, navigate through the air, and land safely at a desired destination. Magerko noted that this drone project gives students “a jolt of excitement” since there is immediate feedback when they complete their code and run it through the drone. Students get results or error messages instantly after executing code, which provides a unique hands-on and real-time learning experience.
photo courtesy of Albert Gallatin Area School District
The Community Foundation of Fayette County’s Idea Fund awarded a grant for this project in 2023. “The Idea Fund was created by a donor who wanted to help teachers achieve a level of creativity in the classroom that allows students of all learning styles to thrive,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
In addition to enhancing classroom learning, Magerko said that the drone coding project has also “exposed students to a variety of careers that are associated with drones, that they did not previously know existed.”
Because of generous donors, Fayette County school districts and local students are able to receive support through various grant opportunities. You can help strengthen education and career readiness too! Call our office at 724-437-8600 x1 to learn more.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jul 10, 2025 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) is now accepting applications for the Laurel Business Institute Scholarship Fund in Memory of Ruth and Milton Decker. This scholarship is for current students attending
Laurel Technical Institute Uniontown and will be applied to tuition and/or fee expenses for the Fall 2025 Trimester.
All other CFFC post-secondary scholarships are closed for the 2025-2026 school year. Applicants can view the status of their submissions by
logging into their dashboard. If you have any questions, please contact Celena Valentine, Accountant/Scholarship Coordinator, at 724-437-8600 x2.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | May 27, 2025 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County’s (CFFC) Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program offers tuition assistance for Pre-Kindergarten and K-12. Tuition assistance is available to Fayette County, PA students attending a participating private school. Please contact your school administrator to inquire about the school’s participation in this EITC Program.
To apply for this tuition assistance, you must contact your school administrator to obtain an EITC Tuition Assistance Application, which are available now.
Submit your completed application to CFFC, 5 South Mt. Vernon Ave., Uniontown, PA 15401. All applications must be post-marked on or before July 31, 2025.
Families who will receive tuition assistance are typically notified in October.
We are grateful for the generosity of our Pennsylvania business partners. For more information on how your business can receive tax credits and participate in this program, please visit the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) website.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | May 19, 2025 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Renee M. Couser (CFFC Executive Director), Scott T. Lee (Foundation for Free Enterprise Education’s Vice President of Marketing & Development), John and Bernadette Ptak with a plaque recognizing the Ptak Family Fund as a “Student Champion” for PFEW
John and Bernadette Ptak say that the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) helped “connect the dots” for their charitable giving. The Ptak Family Fund was created in 2022, specifically to support Fayette County students attending the Foundation for Free Enterprise Education’s “PA Free Enterprise Week” (PFEW).
Mr. and Mrs. Ptak first met with Renee Couser, CFFC Executive Director, in fall of 2021 to discuss the possibility of creating a charitable fund and how they’d like to help the community. The couple had years of experience owning and operating “Ptak’s”, a formal wear store in Uniontown that was established in 1924 by John’s grandfather, and Bernadette is also a retired school teacher. Throughout conversations about their backgrounds and charitable interests, education was a shining topic.
“The foundation has worked with the PFEW program in the past, and I thought it could be a great fit for the Ptaks, combining youth education and their background in small business,” said Couser.
photo courtesy of Foundation for Free Enterprise Education
PA Free Enterprise Week (PFEW) is a youth leadership program that educates high school students about the American free enterprise system, bringing together students and business people from throughout the state. Students gain perspective about what it takes to be successful in an increasingly competitive global marketplace, by simulating the operation of a company in a student team with the help of a business mentor. PFEW also features a Speaker Series and The Stock Market Game.
photo courtesy of Foundation for Free Enterprise Education
Over the past three years, the Ptak Family Fund has provided a total of $15,000 in registration reimbursement for Fayette County students who graduated from the week-long program. “We are so happy to be part of the PFEW program, which gives the youth of Fayette County a very positive experience of the business world,” said John and Bernadette Ptak.
“The community foundation is a matchmaker for charitable giving, so we’re always excited to learn about someone’s passions and provide options for how they can help others. Reading the thank-you letters from PFEW students, it’s clear that the Ptak Family Fund is supporting education in a special way, just like the donors aspire to do,” said Couser.
photo courtesy of Foundation for Free Enterprise Education
Quotes from Fayette County students who participated in PFEW 2024:
“I had so much fun making friends, learning about finance, and how to run a business…. I will always remember this experience that you have given me.” – Jenna from Geibel Catholic Junior Senior High School
“I had the opportunity to meet and network with business people from all over the state.” – Abagale from Albert Gallatin Area High School
“I learned about how business really works, experienced what it is like to live on a college campus, and overall, working as a team was my favorite part of PFEW.” – Mercedies from Connellsville Area High School
“Without your sponsorship, I would not have been able to attend PFEW, and my interest in pursuing a business degree might not have been sparked.” – Jacob from Albert Gallatin Area High School
“My finance team and I participated in 12 different quarters of actual business decisions while competing against other companies.” – Chris from Frazier High School
“The speakers were a major part of this week as well, and they taught me a lot.” – William from Laurel Highlands High School