‘Close to my heart’

Lawrence Township Education Foundation appoints new executive director

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Bonne O'Flanagan Giglio

Bonne O’Flanagan Giglio has been named to serve as the Lawrence Township Education Foundation’s new executive director.

Giglio, who had served on the Lawrence Township Education Foundation’s board of trustees since 2021, took over the reins Feb. 1. She succeeds Karen Faiman, who resigned to take another job after seven years as executive director.

In her new post, Giglio will be responsible for fundraising, event planning, grant-making, communications and administration functions for the nonprofit organization.

The Lawrence Township Education Foundation awards grants to teachers and administrators for new programs and projects. The grants have ranged from sponsoring a Wellness Day at the Eldridge Park School to upgrades to the Lawrence Middle School’s TV studio.

“The mission of the Lawrence Township Education Foundation is particularly close to my heart,” Giglio said. “I am keenly aware of the rigorous academic program that our school district provides.”

Giglio’s children are enrolled at the Lawrence Intermediate School and the Lawrence Middle School. She is a past president of the Ben Franklin Elementary School and the Lawrence Intermediate School Parent Teacher Organizations.

The new executive director said she is looking forward to “increasing community involvement to fund programs that would benefit the students and have a lasting impact on them.”

Giglio is not new to the nonprofit world. She worked as an event planner and fundraiser for nonprofit groups that ranged from The Watershed Institute to the Women’s Fund of New Jersey and the Fisher Center for Alzheimer Research Foundation.

She also serves on the Lawrence Township Recreation Advisory Committee and is a Girl Scout co-leader. She belongs to the Moms Club of Lawrenceville and was involved with the Lawrence Road Presbyterian Church’s nursery school program.

Drue Stapleton, the chairman of the Lawrence Township Education Foundation board of trustees, praised Giglio. The board is “thrilled” with her appointment as the nonprofit group’s executive director.

“Bonne offers a unique combination of her familiarity and passion for the Lawrence Township Education Foundation, the Lawrence Township Public Schools and the Lawrence community,” Stapleton said.

The Lawrence Township Education Foundation raises money from individuals, local businesses, corporations and foundations for grants to teachers and administrators. It has approved more than 1,100 grants totaling more than $4.6 million since its inception in 1992.