Foundation for Westwood Education To Hold “Westwood’s Got Talent”

The Foundation for Westwood Education is hosting Westwood’s Got Talent, this year in lieu of its annual spelling bee. Westwood children from the ages of five to eighteen may enter in the STEAM categories of music, dance, science, literary arts, visual arts, and cinematic/dramatic arts. Registration will run from March 1 to March 14, 2021.

The entrance fee is $40 per video for an individual or $80 for a group. The Grand Prize winner will receive $300. The age groups are 5-8, 9-12, 13-15, and 16-18. Parent/guardian permission is required to enter.

“It’s a challenging time for nonprofits,” says Foundation for Westwood Education President Courtney Krupinsky. “We had a few ideas for a fundraiser to replace the annual spelling bee, and we settled on Westwood’s Got Talent.”

The two rounds of voting will run from March 15 to 28. The first round will run from March 15-21, and the second from March 22-28. The Grand Prize winner will be announced between March 29-31.

The videos will be hosted on the Foundation for Westwood Education website through ViralSweep. Krupinsky reports that ViralSweep was chosen because of its being comprehensive, its ability to gather fees, and ease of use.

“Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Foundation for Westwood Education’s traditional grants have been suspended,” explains Krupinsky. Instead, grants were given to fund the remote learning tool Nearpod and the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) tools Second Step and Responsive Classroom. Additionally, it has funded “Book and a Bite” and “Current Conversations” programs for senior citizens through the Council on Aging.

To support the Foundation for Westwood Education without having a child enter Westwood’s Got Talent, donations can be made by texting GIVE4WW to 44-321 or via their website.