Holy Hillmen! Thanks to our early donors, we've blown past our original goal of $15,000 and set a new record for our BDOG fundraising. Wow! Let's keep it going to help fully fund our grants program for the next school year (we give back at least $40,000 annually). Remember - 100% of your donation goes to our mission to enhance Placer High School. Thank you and Go Hillmen!
Rarely does one have the opportunity to make a positive impact on both student learning and community vitality. That's exactly what your gift to the Hillmen Foundation can accomplish. Your gift benefits Placer High School, one of the most iconic and historic schools in California. It helps bridge critical funding gaps, enriches the educational environment, enhances facilities and resources used by the entire community, and ensures greater Auburn and beyond has a vital future workforce and quality of life.
Since the school's founding in 1897, local civic groups, businesses and individuals have rallied behind Placer High to ensure students have the tools and experiences needed for a dynamic education beyond what state funding provides. That legacy lives on through the Hillmen Foundation, an independent nonprofit organization founded in 1989 by legendary coaches, educators and principals Jug Covich and Tom Johnson. For 35 years, the Hillmen Foundation has enriched Placer High and our community in the areas of academics, athletics, student activities, and alumni relations.
Thanks to our generous alumni, faculty/staff and community donors, the Hillmen Foundation has provided nearly $950,000 in grants and scholarships to Placer High School and its students. Direct grants to the school include: specialized calculators for math; DNA materials for science; field trips; at-risk student intervention programs, including Peer Counseling; equipment for special education students to learn business and life skills; instruments and supplies for Placer's highly-recognize music program; scoreboard, new all-weather track, lighting, and the concession stand/restroom facility at LeFebvre Stadium; the arched entry to the campus; 3D printer for the Mechatronics Lab; welding machines and supplies for the Metal Shop; technology for multiple classrooms; art supplies for the Art Department; sound and lighting for performing arts; and training and safety equipment, uniforms, and supplies to support student athletes.
Still, it is about so much more than tools, supplies and facilities. It is about the impact that goes far beyond the classroom or high school experience. Consider the hands-on science equipment that inspires the next researcher. The welding tools that teach students a marketable trade. The college field trip that encourages further education. The extra curricular opportunities that create future leaders. The musical instrument introduced to a student who then excels onto the world stage. It's the all-weather track and facilities that bring national competition and tourism to our community, as well as greater fitness and health for our residents. It's the school, local and touring musicians and artists who perform in the auditorium, adding to Auburn's cultural scene. These are just a few of the endless opportunities donations to the Hillmen Foundation have inspired.
But we cannot do it without you!
The Hillmen Foundation is an independent, all-volunteer organization managed by a Board of Directors consisting of retired and active faculty, alumni, current and former parents, and community and business leaders. This means 100% of funds raised goes toward our mission to enhance Placer High and our community. Please join us and help continue the legacy of our historic school with a gift through the Big Day of Giving.
To learn more about the impact the Hillmen Foundation and Placer High School have had on generations of students and families, visit our website at hillmenfoundation.org. And remember...whether a graduate, parent, faculty, or fan...
In the best of times, in the worst of times, at all times...
It's Great to be a Hillman!
The purpose of the Hillmen Foundation is to support Placer High School in the areas of academics, student activities, and athletics. This includes the staff, students, and alumni endeavors of the school. Additionally, the Hillmen Foundation seeks to stimulate gifts of service, endowments, and bequests, and to maintain an association of persons interested in Placer High School.
The Hillmen Foundation has launched a campaign to increase its overall impact to more than $1.3 million by 2027 (the school's 130th anniversary). This will allow the Foundation to increase grants and support for:
Academics:
Central to the Hillmen Foundation's mission is ensuring that our students, faculty and staff have the resources they need to enhance student learning. Our classroom and career tech grants and initiatives often bridge the gap between education funding and what students need to excel in a 21st century learning environment. Examples of academic grants include: DNA lab and enhanced resources for Science Dept; specialized math materials and equipment; technology: 3D printers, computers, scanners, microprocessor kits, etc.; Career Tech programs and equipment, such as welding machines, photo lab, etc.; Performing and Visual Arts Dept. programs and equipment; English Dept. literature and writing programs; support for at-risk youth; music instruments and band uniforms; Peer Counseling; World Language programs; AVID Program; multi-media/film program; and much more. All students benefit from the philanthropic support of our donors towards our Academic grants.
Activities:
An exceptional education is a synergy between the classroom and outside activities. Our activities grants support a wide breadth of programs, including student clubs (such as FFA, service clubs, etc.), new student orientation, assemblies, special events, field trips, Grad Night, Eagle Scout projects, community service projects, outreach to middle and elementary students, and much more. Donors interested in enriching student activities outside of the classroom are encouraged to support the Hillmen Foundation.
Athletics:
Hillmen pride is embodied in a long and storied history of athletic accomplishments. Our athletics grants help provide the equipment and improvements needed to encourage safe development of our student athletes, upgrade facilities for both athletes and fans, and support lifelong fitness in our community. Athletic grants benefit Placer High athletes with general funding for the department, as well as special grants for a multitude of needs by various competitive teams.
Scholarships:
Each year, thousands of dollars are granted to graduating seniors to help further their post-high school pursuits. The Hillmen Foundation manages several endowments established by alumni and community members to provide scholarships that honor or memorialize those who have made an impact on the school and community.
We also raise funds for three scholarships sponsored by the Hillmen Foundation:
- The Hillmen Foundation Covich Johnson Founders Scholarship awarded to an outstanding senior in honor of our founders, Jug Covich and Tom Johnson; and
- Two Hillmen Foundation scholarships for exceptional graduating students who have excelled in at least one of our focus areas of academics, athletics and activities.
In 2024 alone, Placer High students will have access to more than $20,000 through approximately 20 endowed and Foundation-sponsored scholarship opportunities. Donors are invited to help students further their academic and career opportunities by contributing to an existing scholarship or opening an endowed scholarship that can honor or memorialize a loved one or family.
Capital Improvements and Major Initiatives:
Special grants for capital improvements or other major initiatives that enhance both the school and community are a significant hallmark of the Foundation's work over the past three decades. Currently, we are helping Placer High raise funds for upgraded lighting structure in the Placer High Auditorium (also used by community groups), as well as electronic signage that can add to communications and promotion of school activities and accomplishments. Examples of past grants include: Athletic Complex campaign support; All-Weather Track used by students and community organizations, such as the renowned Western States 100 Race; Stadium scoreboard, sound system and lighting (all used by both the school and community); and the new Alumni Center and snack bar (used to help fund multiple sports) in the historic Earl Crabbe Gym.
Organization name
Hillmen Foundation
1989
Tax id (EIN)
68-0168995
Mission Category
Education
Operating Budget
$50,001 - $100,000
Organization Need
Funding: Program, Funding: Other
Demographics Served
General population
Local Counties Served
Placer
Address
PO Box 6115Placer County, CA, US
Auburn, CA, US
Newcastle, CA, US, 95658