Weirton, WV-The Chaffin Luhana Foundation is proud to team up with Oak Glen High School to announce plans for the new Chaffin Luhana Broadcast and Media Centers at the school. The Foundation, founded by Chaffin Luhana Partners Eric Chaffin and Roopal Luhana, and their families, has made a $25,000 donation to create the broadcast and media centers.
Lissa Dulick and Morgan Martin, English teachers at Oak Glen High School, are heading up the media center project along with Oak Glen High School Principal Dave Smith, Assistant Principal Carla Carinci-Bell, Ted Arneault, History, Government and Psychology teacher, and Julie Zoellers, Math and Technology teacher.
The Oak Glen team wants to improve students’ communication skills, analytical/research skills, and problem-solving skills. They believe the media centers will provide students with a place to learn and thrive in a different kind of environment. They envision the media centers in particular as a “hub of the building where students and faculty can go to read, write, study, create projects, communicate and collaborate.”
“Our media team has made great strides in creating a resource that will meet the needs of 21st century learners, and this addition to Oak Glen will provide a positive, collegiate atmosphere for our students and faculty. We feel a facility like this will challenge students with a space that encourages creativity, self-sufficiency, and purpose. It has been an exciting collaborative project to be a part of, and it is incredibly rewarding for all of us to see this concept begin to take shape,” Ms. Dulick said.
“The Media Center will be a tremendous asset for our students and faculty as a rallying point for data driven projects based on an analysis of literary sources. This project makes a pivotal step toward our school’s goal to enrich our curriculum with rigorous research projects,” Mr. Arneault said.
Phase 1 of the Oak Glen High School Media Center is set to open in the fall of 2015 in the space currently used as a library. Principal Smith is thrilled with the progress already made by his team and has high hopes for the success the media centers will bring to its students.
“Oak Glen High School is very fortunate to have developed a positive partnership with the Chaffin Luhana team. Our entire student body will benefit from this generous donation. Our goal is to become the highest achieving high school in the state of West Virginia and this media center is a huge step in us achieving this goal. The media center project will positively affect 100% of our students with their college and career readiness skills. Oak Glen High School and our community are indebted to the Chaffin Luhana team for this wonderful gift,” Mr. Smith said.
Chaffin Luhana Partner Eric Chaffin is a 1989 graduate of Oak Glen High School, and also looks forward to helping students at his alma mater.
“When my law firm expanded from New York City to its offices in Weirton, WV and Pittsburgh a little over two years ago, we did so knowing that we wanted to give back to the local communities. Since then, we have spoken to thousands of high school students about the dangers of distracted driving, we have been inspired by the Ohio Valley students to create the Chaffin Luhana Foundation Driver Awareness Challenge, and now we are proudly making a significant donation to Oak Glen to create the Chaffin Luhana Broadcast Media Centers. I graduated from Oak Glen in 1989, around the same time as Principal Smith. When Dave approached us about donating to the school, it was a no-brainer. Research and communication skills are key to our law firm’s success. We see the value in teaching students these skills early and that can happen only if they have access to appropriate materials. We are excited to help out and hope the media centers inspire students to learn, and encourage people with humble roots to work hard, achieve success in their chosen professions, and give back to West Virginia when they can. Doing Good by Doing Right is our firm motto, and that philosophy can help build stronger communities as this project reflects,” Mr. Chaffin said.
When the first phase of the media centers opens in the fall of 2015, members of the media will be invited back to Oak Glen to view the progress.
Please join us at Oak Glen High School on Wednesday, May 20th, 2015 at 1:30pm. Eric Chaffin, Roopal Luhana, and members of the media center team at Oak Glen will be available for interviews.