Kentucky Bank Supports Mentoring at William Wells Brown Elementary

MENTORING MATTERS – Pictured, from left: Jay Jones, Principal of William Wells Brown Elementary; Louis Prichard, Kentucky Bank President and CEO; Darryl Terry, Central Kentucky Regional President; Andrea Ooten, President and CEO of BBBS; (L-R Front Row): Rajon Clark and Romel Clark, Littles in the BBBS School Plus program at William Wells Brown Elementary.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass (BBBS) announced today that Kentucky Bank has supported their William Wells Brown Elementary School Plus Mentoring program with a donation of $10,000. This gift will help support the School Plus program that began in 2015 with funding from the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. Since 2015, BBBS has supported more than 35 children at William Wells Brown Elementary by pairing them with adult mentors that meet at the school during the school day or in the after-school program for one hour, once a week.  Mentors and their students work on academics for a portion of that time and spend a portion of their time just having fun. When school is out, they also do fun things in the community. One Little Brother in the program says about his Big Brother, “He’s so fun and we’ve already went, like, everywhere in Lexington.”

“We are so proud to support a program that pairs adult volunteers with young people in our community. This involvement helps guide students academically and socially. The Big Brothers Big Sisters program at William Wells Brown Elementary showcases how a partnership with our schools can make a big impact on a child’s life,” said Louis Prichard, Kentucky Bank President and CEO.

Attendance has improved for students enrolled in the program. Teachers also report that they are seeing positive impacts in the classroom – both in behavior and academics.

“We’ve seen such a wonderful response from our matches at William Wells Brown Elementary over the past school year,” said Andrea Ooten, President & CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass. “Our adult mentors really enjoy visiting the school and seeing the children learning. And, the children look forward to their bigs showing up to spend time with them.”

Adult mentors are still needed for BBBS’ school programs at William Wells Brown, Booker T. Washington and Breckinridge Elementary Schools. If you are interested in becoming a mentor, please contact Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass at 859-231-8181 or visit www.bbbs-bluegrass.org for more information.

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