Immediate Past District Governor (iPDG) Brian Amey presented a check to the President of the  St. Martin de Porres Interact Club  today for $4,000 during a meeting with the Orange Rotary Club.

iPDG Brian and many people worked very hard to raise $20,000 in funds to help break the cycle of poverty by providing life changing opportunities for the young people helped by St. Martin de Porres Academy (SMPA). Financial support for Brian’s DG Project came in; the form of direct donations to the project, as proceeds from the raffle tickets and from the ‘Quilt Friends of the Governor’ auction.

The mission of SMPA is to break the cycle of poverty through education by addressing educational disparity by increasing quality education opportunities for at risk children from Connecticut’s lowest income families, thus making them competitive for admission to college and universities.

The Academy’s school model is based upon small class size, an 10-hour extended school day, an 11-month extended school year, 90 minutes of reading per day, 2 meals a day, compulsory instrumental music, and mandatory parental commitment. Students are in school approximately 850 more hours per year than their public school peers and their attendance is 97%.