Every year, the San Francisco 49ers Foundation hands out more than $20,000 in grants to local educators. The Follow Your Bliss Award, inspired by Dr. Harry Edwards, honors local educators “… who lead our future generation with purpose, passion, dedication and love despite uncertainties and any hurdles they may face.”
For the seventh year in a row, ten local educators received grants to help further their work in local schools and this year’s group included Sedgwick Elementary School Principal Amanda Clark.
“I didn’t know this was even a thing until I got an email that said, ‘Congratulations, you’re a finalist.’ And I thought, ‘I don’t know what this is,’” said Clark with a laugh. “I went to the teacher who nominated me, and it was just, it was such an amazing, wonderful surprise.”
Clark, who has worked for the past three years in the Cupertino Union School District, says she was taken aback by the award. But once the surprise wore off, she knew immediately what she was going to use the funds for—cooperative play PE classes for TK through third graders.
“It’s just beautiful, the timing, because I was really thinking, ‘I’m close to having enough money for this, but not quite. So, we might have to do some fundraising,’” said Clark. “This is going to get us to where we can support all three days fully. So, it’s just really perfect.”
Clark says with COVID, many of the students in this age group missed out on learning some important social skills.
“It’s another adult on campus, and that tends to be someone young and fun and doing fun stuff. So, it’s a nice connection for them,” said Clark. “We’ve also really seen, especially since we came back from distance learning during COVID, that we have students that really need to be kind of more intentionally taught about cooperative play and getting along … It’s just to help kids find ways to interact with each other and play and have fun and build some skills on the on the field, but also just interpersonal skills.”
Clark attended an awards banquet at the end of May, where she met with the other educators receiving the award and heard from the award’s namesake, Dr. Edwards.
“It was so humbling, really to be in that group … I was sitting there and I was listening to all the things that were being said about other people, I thought, ‘Oh my gosh,’ a little bit of impostor syndrome … And then it’s just such gratitude for my staff and the folks who nominated me,” said Clark.
“Dr. Edwards’ speech was completely inspiring and just made me feel … I have his blueprint for educational achievement, and every single piece of it resonates,” Clark continued. “Just the way he spoke and the honor and the respect and the career that he’s had, it was a really inspiring evening. Just basically makes me want to do more and be better.”
The 49ers Foundation opens up applications for the Follow Your Bliss Award every spring and selects the finalists before the summer break.