Who We Are
… and Our Hope for the Future
Every Child Valued (ECV) is a community-based non-profit that has operated after-school and summer programs at Eggerts Crossing Village and the Lawrence Community Center since 2001, to provide educational support and enrichment for children from low- and moderate-income families. The after-school programs are supported through a partnership with the Lawrence Township Public Schools (LTPS); additional financial support comes from individual donations and corporate and foundation grants.
The mission of ECV is “to motivate the young residents of Lawrence Township to reach their highest potential as educated and fulfilled adults, to strengthen families, to combat racial, cultural, and socioeconomic isolation, and to build a sense of community.” ECV pursues this mission because it envisions the elimination of the historic pattern of achievement gaps among participating children in the Lawrence Township Public Schools.
Since 2018, ECV has also provided a before-school breakfast-based program for all schoolchildren who reside in Eggerts Crossing Village, with major grant support through the All Kids Thrive initiative of the Princeton Area Community Foundation in an effort to combat chronic absenteeism in Mercer County schools.
Since early 2020, ECV has also provided hands-on and online support for students who have needed help connecting to and participating in online learning.
ECV is governed by an experienced board of community-minded citizens who oversee the work of a talented and dedicated executive director and staff:
Michelle Cash – Chair
Thomas Wilfrid, PhD – Secretary
Niki Graham
Ronald Rose
Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Vamos
Devin Goodman, DDS – Vice Chair
Alex Brosowsky
Ida Lawrence, PhD
Jacqueline Stacey
Fred Vereen, Jr. – Founder
Laura Waters, PhD – Treasurer
Chelsea Ezzo
Christine O’Shaughnessy
Stuart Tucker, Esq.
Walter (Chris) Woolley, EdD
Executive Director – Nicole Cody Program Director – Courtney Leonard
Our Hope for the Future
As a major community partner of Lawrence Township Public Schools, we look forward to continuing to help LTPS study and address patterns of student academic success and advance the district’s goals in relation to equity, diversity, and inclusion.
At this point in time, we are especially interested in helping students from low-income families make up the academic ground they have lost as a result of the pandemic. We see particular needs in regard to reading and social/emotional isolation.