L. Gale Lemerand's $100K donation to Palm Terrace Elementary will fund academics, arts

Local entrepreneur and philanthropist L. Gale Lemerand and Principal Karen Troutman visit a classroom at Palm Terrace Elementary in November, when Lemerand donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school.
Local entrepreneur and philanthropist L. Gale Lemerand and Principal Karen Troutman visit a classroom at Palm Terrace Elementary in November, when Lemerand donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school.

Three years after receiving its fourth consecutive D rating from the state, Palm Terrace Elementary is making strides in the right direction.

The school received its first C since 2015 earlier this year, Assistant Principal Karen Troutman was promoted to principal in August and, last month, the school celebrated a $100,000 donation from a prominent philanthropist.

The donation will have an “immense impact” on the student body, Volusia County Schools shared on social media, especially given the makeup of Palm Terrace’s nearly 600 students.

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New Assistant Principal Madison Miller says 95% of the Daytona Beach school’s students are living in poverty and receive free or reduced lunch, and 85% of the students are non-white.

“We are notably one of the, if not the, highest-need schools in this county,” she said Monday.

Without education, many do not have a ticket out of poverty and less-than-desirable situations, she noted.

Assistant Principal Madison Miller, L. Gale Lemerand and Palm Terrace Elementary Principal Karen Troutman at the school in November. Lemerand donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school after hearing Miller speak at Daytona State College's annual gala.
Assistant Principal Madison Miller, L. Gale Lemerand and Palm Terrace Elementary Principal Karen Troutman at the school in November. Lemerand donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school after hearing Miller speak at Daytona State College's annual gala.

Lemerand inspired to donate to Palm Terrace

Miller, who was the district’s 2022-23 Teacher of the Year while at Chisholm Elementary, recently shared her education journey at Daytona State College’s 28th annual gala, which caught the attention of L. Gale Lemerand, a local entrepreneur and philanthropist.

Miller had dropped out of college at 22 when she was pregnant with her first child. She struggled financially and experienced homelessness before enrolling at Daytona State College. She says education catapulted her out of a difficult time in her life, and she now has two master’s degrees.

Lemerand was inspired by Miller’s talk and information she shared about Palm Terrace. A longtime supporter of higher education, the donation was his first to an elementary school.

“I went over and I met the principal and some of the students and was even more impressed with everything that I saw than I was before I made the donation,” he said, adding that the school welcomed him with its drum corps, choir and cheerleading team.

Lemerand, 88, also came from humble beginnings. He was raised in a “very poor” family in Michigan and graduated high school, but did not go to college.

“I guess that's one of the reasons I support education so much is because I had missed out on it myself,” he said.

Palm Terrace Elementary School's drumline welcomes L. Gale Lemerand (second from back right) in November, when the local entrepreneur and philanthropist donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school.
Palm Terrace Elementary School's drumline welcomes L. Gale Lemerand (second from back right) in November, when the local entrepreneur and philanthropist donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school.

Donation will support academics, arts, social emotional learning

Troutman says they are planning how to use the money, but the first goal is to enrich student academics, namely English, math and science, as they emerge from the poor ratings, which considered test scores and learning gains.

Following the four consecutive D's from the Florida Department of Education from 2015-19, the school was put at risk of external oversight and students were allowed to transfer to higher-performing schools. No ratings were given in 2020 because of the pandemic, and districts had to opt in to 2021 ratings, but Troutman noted the D’s had progressed from near failing to high D’s to last year's C.

“We just want to continue teaching our kids and giving them as much support as we can because we are that school that needs so much support,” Troutman said. “Students are in different situations. They're in poverty. We have a lot of transient students, who are living from apartment to apartment.”

Palm Terrace is a Title 1 school, meaning it is federally designated as having a high percentage of students from low-income families.

Troutman noted additional programs the school offers, like a family center with clothes for students in need, or Food Brings Hope’s KidsZone, which offers tutoring, meals and field trips.

Miller also noted therapy program The House Next Door has an on-campus staff member for students. With so many in unstable situations, school staff want to create a sense of family and home.

Troutman says they want to “continue developing the whole child,” so some of the funds will support social emotional learning, which helps students learn to better express their feelings, and some will support arts and music programs like dance, chorus and band.

These programs can allow students to shine in certain areas and can tie back to better academic performance, she said.

“Just reviewing the school data, looking at our numbers, we are moving in the right direction. It takes time to see that growth and it takes time to review it,” Troutman said. “We are making strides.”

The school will use data to identify additional items the funds will support. Miller noted that much of the funding they receive, like federal dollars, is designated for specific uses, so Lemerand’s donation will allow a more creative and holistic approach to addressing students’ needs.

“We are very thankful to Mr. Gale Lemerand to extend his donation to us and recognizing that all schools have different needs," Troutman said. "It takes a village to raise a child."

Local entrepreneur and philanthropist L. Gale Lemerand (second from back right) visits a classroom at Palm Terrace Elementary in November, when he donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school.
Local entrepreneur and philanthropist L. Gale Lemerand (second from back right) visits a classroom at Palm Terrace Elementary in November, when he donated $100,000 to the Daytona Beach school.

Lemerand is a longtime donor to Florida colleges and nonprofits

As The News-Journal put it in 2015,  Lemerand is no stranger to “giving away lots of his money."

At that time, he had donated “$30 million or so” to colleges and other causes, such as March of Dimes, the Boys & Girls Club and senior citizens groups.

Lemerand lends his name to buildings, programs and scholarships at Bethune-Cookman University, Daytona State College, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach's Museum of Arts & Science and the University of Florida, where the street that runs past the football stadium is named for him.

Lemerand sold his first business empire, an insulation company, for over $100 million when he was 60. He’s also owned or been a stakeholder in dozens of companies and restaurants over the years, though he says he’s starting to take a step back due to his age.

Contact reporter Danielle Johnson at djohnson@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: L. Gale Lemerand donates to Palm Terrace Elementary in Daytona Beach