Photo submitted   Representatives from area Northwest Saving Bank branches including, in front, from left, Don Valone, Mary Maloney, Linda Decker, and in second row, Neil Hoffman, Tom Fledderman and Kevin Oknefski, present a check to Paula Fritz Eddy, from the Elk County Community Foundation.

By Amy Cherry

Staff Writer

    In an effort to support innovative educational programs to area public schools, Northwest Savings Bank recently presented a $10,000 donation to the Elk County Community Foundation.  

The donation is part of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program (EITC) sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) which provides funding for programs that do not fall within the typical academic program at public schools.

    EITC funds are administered and distributed through the Foundation, which has been designated to serve as an Educational Improvement Organization by DCED.

    In 2008, through the Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program and the Elk County Community Foundation, St. Marys, Johnsonburg and Ridgway Area School Districts were able to apply for grants for programming.

     The grants were used to purchase a Smart board, computer and projector for one classroom along with training for the teachers for the Ridgway Area School District.

    The Johnsonburg School District will be sending educators to the workplace this summer at local businesses where they can help enhance their curriculum. Teachers will then help students become more aware of what knowledge they need to enter the workforce in their community.

    St. Marys Area School District purchased 10 projectors for middle school classrooms for the use of integrating technology, particularly with digital videos from Discover United Streaming.

    Any entity authorized to conduct business within Pennsylvania and subject to certain taxes is eligible to apply to be involved with the EITC program. Tax credits are limited to 75 percent of the business' contribution with a maximum of $100,000 annually. If a business agrees to make the same contribution for two consecutive years, it may receive a tax credit equal to 90 percent of its contribution.

    Interested participants must submit a brief application to the DCED. The application can be found at www.inventpa.com. The Foundation also has applications and additional information available to assist with the business application process.