by Marta Segal Block | Jul 9, 2020 | News, Poetry Slam, Spoken Word
How do you have a poetry slam when you can’t gather? You do it virtually! Just like the rest of the world, our Spoken Word program had some unexpected challenges this year. But, our poets prevailed. For the first time, we had a combined Brooks/Julian club. The... 
by Marta Segal Block | Jun 22, 2020 | Beye, Fundraising Events, News
One of the things that made us saddest about canceling this year’s Bingo Bash was that we were losing the chance to give Mr. Ellwanger, also known as Mr. E, the 2020 Staszak Educator Award. Mr. Ellwanger started his Oak Park career as a music teacher at Beye,... 
by Tracy DellAngelaBarber | Mar 11, 2020 | Battle of the Bots, Brooks, D97 Schools, Events, Julian, News, OPEF Programs, VEX Robotics
It took a lot more than luck for the “Lucky Llamas” to take home the top honor at the Battle of the Bots middle school robotics competition this weekend. For this all-girl team of 7th graders from Julian Middle School, winning the VEX Robotics Excellence Award... 
by Laura Garcia | May 17, 2019 | Brooks, D97 Schools, Julian, News, Poetry Slam, Spoken Word
OPEF Spoken Word students shook the house at the School of Rock with their raw honesty and powerful words last week. The poetry slam, titled Respect the Mic, fostered creativity and self-expression while giving kids the opportunity to speak about their lives in a... 
by Tracy DellAngelaBarber | Feb 21, 2019 | Fundraising Events, Julian, News, Spoken Word
‘Allowing teachers to see students for who they really are’ Buying a ticket to OPEF’s re-invented fundraiser not only allows you to support amazing enrichment programs in Oak Park schools, it also gives you a chance to celebrate an influential teacher who does... 
by Marta Segal Block | Feb 11, 2019 | Events, Fundraising Events, News
What does it take to pull off a bingo-themed party for 200 people and make sure your guests can win great prizes, enjoy yummy food and drinks, and support a great cause while having fun with friends and neighbors? The first, most important step is to deploy an...