About Us

Meet 2022-2023 Team

Our foundation is directed by a board of parent volunteers:

  • Gina Bowman ~ President

  • Tom Ko ~ Vice President

  • Kim Adam ~ Treasurer

  • Rebecca Robinson ~ Secretary

  • Mandi Annett ~ Director of Special Events

  • Carlotta Hammes ~ Director of S.T.E.A.M. Initiatives

  • Leah Smith ~ Director of Sponsorships

  • Adriana Champagne ~ Director of Donor Relations

  • Emily Paup ~ Social Media Manager

  • Anthony Bañuelos ~ Webmaster

* Please see our Volunteer Page for open positions.

 

Our Mission

The Friends of Malcom Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds to provide all children at John Malcom Elementary with excellence in education. Our primary purpose is to support the students of John Malcom Elementary with instructional aides, campus safety improvements, S.T.E.A.M. Innovation Lab upgrades and other programs not funded by federal, state, or district budgets.

Friends of Malcom Goals

Friends of Malcom Foundation is dedicated to enrich the educational experience of each child at John Malcom Elementary by:

  • Providing funds for paraeducator(s) who serve as classroom aides to bolster learning and instruction.

  • Continuing support of Malcom’s STEAM lab, working with the school to expand and enrich available materials.

  • Funding special projects focused on cost-effective, direct-impact spending, addressing classroom needs not met by state budgets allocated to JMES.

Why does our school need money?

Our property taxes in Laguna Niguel are divided evenly among CUSD schools, based on the number of students in each school. Schools with lower income students automatically qualify for an additional Title One funding (federal grants designed for areas of high poverty). John Malcom Elementary does not qualify for or receive any Title One funding.

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A WORD FROM OUR PRINCIPAL

“We are incredibly fortunate to have the Friends of Malcom Foundation as our partner in education.  Each year, funds raised through the Friends of Malcom Foundation are used to support ALL students K-5.  YOUR support provides each classroom with an additional caring, knowledgeable aide for a portion of the day, reducing the student to adult ratio.  Teachers and aides work together to provide differentiated instruction to meet the individual needs of students, whether it be the re-teaching of skills or providing extensions to the learning. 

Additionally, the foundation is able to provide curricular support to grade levels as needed.  Most recently, the funds from Friends of Malcom helped us in the development of our K-5 STEAM Innovation Lab where students have room to design, build, and create solutions to NGSS engineering challenges.  Friends of Malcom Foundation ensures that students meet their fullest potential.  On behalf of the students and staff, thank you for your support!”

~ Mrs. Laurie Lowy

 

Teacher Testimonials