San Jose, March 26, 2019: Moreland School District is proud to announce that Melissa Rhyne, a Payne Elementary School parent, has been selected as the Junior League of San Jose’s Crystal Bowl Award Winner, in the category of Leadership.  Melissa was nominated by the Moreland School District for her work as the President of the Moreland Education Foundation (MEF).

As the President of MEF, Melissa increased fundraising revenue to the Moreland School District while decreasing the workload on volunteers, creating a more sustainable program.  Because of her leadership style, Melissa has recruited volunteers to lead MEF’s branch of Sports in Moreland, supporting over 550 students in middle school sports. Under her leadership, more than $21,000 has been earmarked annually to fund teacher grants for the Moreland school community.  

Melissa is a quiet worker who prefers to shine the spotlight on those volunteers she’s recruited rather than give any credit to herself.  She has been extremely successful in networking with various school communities and allowing people to find a part of the MEF organization that best fits their strengths and passion, therefore recruiting long-term committed volunteers.  Because of Melissa’s dedicated time to MEF, the District has experienced a resurgence of energy from teachers who have reconnected with MEF through their Innovation Grants, a program that has brought social-emotional learning to schools, mascot costumes, field trip opportunities and more to almost 5,000 students.

“As the leader of MEF, Melissa’s passion and tireless energy for serving the entire Moreland community has created a sustainable volunteer organization and secured award winning programs for our students for years to come,” said Moreland Superintendent Dr. Mary Kay Going.  

The Junior League of San Jose (JLSJ) is a charitable organization of women committed to developing the potential of women, improving the community and promoting volunteerism through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.  The Junior League of San Jose promotes and recognizes volunteers through its annual community-wide Volunteer Recognition Luncheon to be held at Villa Ragusa Restaurant in Campbell on April 10, 2019.

The Moreland Education Foundation (MEF) is an all-volunteer group of parents who support all seven Moreland schools, with the goal to increase general financial support and additional resources for Moreland District schools when public funding may not be available.  Under the MEF organization, the Moreland School District is additionally supported by Music in Moreland (MiM) and Sports in Moreland(SiM). MEF is currently looking to fill open positions on its Executive Board. To learn more, visit www.mefhome.org.