Central Valley High teachers play the fools in arts fundraiser
Central Valley High School students lined the quad on Wednesday – April Fool’s Day – to watch some of their teachers get pied in the face.
The Central Valley High performing arts department started the fundraiser. Students bought $1 tickets toward the teacher they wanted to target, from a list of 15 participating. The three teachers with the most tickets to their names were pied.
Elisabeth Konynenberg, choir and performing arts director at Central Valley, said she got the idea from a performing arts camp she attended.
The fundraiser was more than a month in the planning. Oscar Rivas, a junior at Central Valley and a member of the Advanced Choir and Choralier Council, said performing arts students advertised the program through their classes and friends to garner support.
Central Valley teachers also stepped up to assist the department. Michael Fredericksen, an English and psychology teacher, said he was asked by a student to participate and it was “hard to say no to a good cause.”
Konynenberg said her colleagues’ support was one of the best parts of the event. “There was so much teacher participation – much more than I expected – with 15 teachers volunteering.” It was “nice to know” that other teachers on campus were willing to assist with her efforts, she said. As a first-year teacher at Central Valley, she was encouraged by their support.
The result was a smash – or a splat. “We had a much greater turnout than we anticipated,” Konynenberg stated. “Our original goal was to raise around $200, but we ended up exceeding the goal and raised $300.”
The funds will assist with student trips, teaching materials and supplies.
So on Wednesday, as a culmination of their hard work, three lucky students had the opportunity to pie their teachers. Konynenberg was the first-place “winner,” and was happily pied first. Fredericksen and history teacher Jon Merchant were the other two top vote-getters.
And the performing arts department is not finished. “We are hoping to make this an April Fool’s tradition,” Konynenberg added.
Asked about continuing the program, Rivas said, “Second annual Pie-A-Teacher? Yeah, that sounds really great.”
Gabriella Germann is a junior at Central Valley High School and a member of The Bee’s Teens in the Newsroom program.
This story was originally published April 6, 2015 at 1:19 PM with the headline "Central Valley High teachers play the fools in arts fundraiser."