BIDDEFORD — The School Committee on Tuesday voted to approve the first reading of a proposed educational foundation, which would allow for more applications for grants, private donations and sponsorships.

The proposed Biddeford Educational Foundation would be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization through the School Department. Superintendent Jeremy Ray said the nonprofit status is necessary to secure certain kinds of funding, such as grants.

Ray said the foundation would function similarly to foundations at colleges and universities, but on a local district level.

“I think it gives us a vehicle for many of the foundations that are out there, many of the grants, that require an organization with nonprofit status and that allows us, and makes (us) eligible to apply for, many different things by having that foundation,” Ray said.

The committee also evaluated policies through which funds could be sought by the nonprofit foundation, something Ray said is necessary when establishing a foundation of this type and which formerly existed within the school district but has since dissolved.

“We’re just trying to lay the groundwork on the policy side so that we don’t have many hiccups moving forward,” Ray said. “One of the things we really need to have is a 501(c)(3) in place to help us with larger grants and corporate donations. … So we worked really hard to get the tax ID number reinstated and doing what we need to have an official foundation, so we’re reactivating that foundation from the past.”

All gifts would be approved by the superintendent, with the understanding that financial donations must be related to an educational service or function, and that donations by School Department staff must be made without reciprocal commitment.

The proposed foundation is not the first of its kind in the area. The Education Foundation of the Kennebunks and Arundel was established in 2006, and has since raised more than $715,000 in charitable contributions for innovative student programming and support of best educational practices.

Tuesday’s School Committee packet stated that establishing an educational foundation for Biddeford is necessary “in communicating the needs of the schools and determining the purposes for which funds may be most effectively used in meeting the needs of the school unit and its students.”

The packet also states that the foundation would be a separate legal entity independent of the School Department, although Ray said it would be set up as an extension of the school district.

The foundation would handle the management of financial gifts in a way conducive to proper use for the district, Ray said, including an already-pledged $260,000 for a proposed renovation of Waterhouse Field, which the school district uses for sporting events and graduation.

Ray said designs for the Waterhouse Field renovation are in the works, but have not yet been made public, and the School Committee did not discuss details of the renovation. Ray said the pledges are merely an example of what the foundation would do once established.

Ray was also not able to say what kind of programming the foundation would seek funding for, but he did say funds sought would be all-encompassing, with grants and donations going toward arts, sports, science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) courses and programs.

“The reason it’s under the umbrella of the foundation is, it allows you to have some flexibility based on what the needs may be,” he said. “You have some people who have interests in working on or donating toward athletics, whereas there are many other people who may have interest in donating toward our STEM academy or toward a library, or whatever that may be, and so this is not limiting in any way.

“It’s a bridge between the School Department and possible sources of funds.”

Ray said although the foundation is in its preliminary stages and still has to go through a second reading before approval, Tuesday’s meeting was an important step in establishing strategies for its creation.

“I think any time you get policies that govern what you’re going to be doing beforehand, it’s helpful,” Ray said. “We get a lot of requests from alumni and class reunions to come back and visit our school, so we want to have an ability to meet their needs and stay connected with alumni, because we know that’s vital for future growth of the School Department.”

— Staff Writer Alan Bennett can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 329 or [email protected].