Students
Yoakum ISD

Yoakum High School receives $25,000 grant for digital sign

  • Pictured from left to right are YHS Student Council Secretary Jordyn Eviez, Yoakum Chamber of Commerce Board Chair Alexa Fikac, Illana Garcia, YHS Student Council Vice President, YHS Student Council Communications and Social Media Officer Leah Muenich, YHS Student Council Advisor Amy Robbins, YHS Student Council President Abbie Galvan, YHS Student Council Treasurer Samantha Adamek, LCRA Board Member Margaret D. “Meg” Voelter, City of Yoakum Mayor Pro Tem Tanya Wenzel, City of Yoakum Mayor Carl O’Neill..
    Pictured from left to right are YHS Student Council Secretary Jordyn Eviez, Yoakum Chamber of Commerce Board Chair Alexa Fikac, Illana Garcia, YHS Student Council Vice President, YHS Student Council Communications and Social Media Officer Leah Muenich, YHS Student Council Advisor Amy Robbins, YHS Student Council President Abbie Galvan, YHS Student Council Treasurer Samantha Adamek, LCRA Board Member Margaret D. “Meg” Voelter, City of Yoakum Mayor Pro Tem Tanya Wenzel, City of Yoakum Mayor Carl O’Neill..

    The Yoakum High School Student Council soon will install a new marquee in front of Yoakum High School thanks to a $25,000 grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) and the City of Yoakum.

    The Community Development Partnership Program (CDPP) grant, along with almost $16,700 in matching funds from the council, will allow for a state-of-the-art digital sign that will be used to share messages about student and community events and information during emergencies.

    “The marquee will help us to advertise all of the wonderful things we are doing at our school, as well as communicate with our community,” said YHS Student Council Advisor Amy Robbins. “In a small town like Yoakum, the school is the heart of the community. We hope by creating a place past, present and future students are proud of, they will feel a sense of pride not only in the school but in the whole town.”

    The marquee is one part of the four-phase Bulldog Beautification Project, a student-led school enhancement project. The Yoakum High School (YHS) Student Council created the project’s vision and action plan, met with city leaders, set the budget, wrote grant applications, and fundraised.

    “These kids are absolutely amazing,” Robbins said. “They organized meetings with people in the community and presented their project to local organizations as well as the school board. They also met with city planners and officials to address the needs of the community. These students are the reason why teachers continue to do what they do every day.”

    Working on the project and receiving the CDPP grant is an experience YHS Student Council president Abbie Galvan said defines her senior year

    “This project and the support of the community and organizations like LCRA have made my senior year one that I will always remember,” Galvan said. “The support from my classmates and their willingness to give up their lunches and free time to do the hard labor we had to do to get this project going has been overwhelming. This project is the legacy we’ll leave behind, and I’m so excited that others are ready to carry this work forward.” The marquee will be installed in the high school’s circle drive over the summer and will be visible to anyone traveling to or from Yoakum’s downtown area.