Family Fun ’17 at FIS
Hundreds of Farragut Intermediate School students and their parents joined FIS faculty at Family Fun Night 2017.
Principal Reggie Mosley said the event — which took place Friday, March 3, in the school and was sponsored by FIS PTA — is the school’s biggest fundraiser.
Mosley said the school’s goal is to have a ratio of two students per electronic learning device.
“That comes with fundraising,” he said. “You’ve got to raise the funds to make that happen, so we have done that over the last three years. Every year, we always earmark ‘X’ number of dollars in big money. I think we have spent close to $500,000 just in a three-year window just to make sure we have those devices in our school.”
Donations and fundraisers, such as Family Fun Night, make the programs possible, and the PTA donates proceeds from fundraising and membership drives to the school. Last year, it donated more than $59,000 to the school. That money was used for technology upgrades and repairs.
“I was thrilled with how Family Fun Night went,” Amy Bush, PTA president, said. “My team worked really hard to plan the event.
“... We raised over $24,000 that night. That money will be used to fund some of our PTA programs that directly benefit the students and staff, and we will also give the school a large portion to use for new technology items and some new playground equipment that they are wanting,” she added.
In addition, “We had a couple new events this year, like Laser Tag, and some old favorites as well, such as inflatables and bake sale,” she said.
The school’s PTA also offers free educational programs for families such as Movie Night, Opera 101 and STEAM night with The Muse, along with such unique programs as Science Lab, Fifth-Grade Celebration and Variety Show.
It coordinates volunteers in classrooms, at school events and in service areas, such as the school’s clinic.
Because of company sponsors, Bush said the event offered families a number of activities, such as a K-9 demonstration from Knox County Sheriff’s Office and a martial arts demonstration from Knoxville Academy of Martial Arts; craft making from The Muse and Bricks4Kidz and carnival games from a number of sponsors.
Organizations also had an opportunity to learn about Camp Invention at one of the booths.
Families also had dinner, either pizza or a chicken sandwich
