Dear Crooms AoIT Alumni Association members and supporters,

On the eve of #Crooms100, we are pleased to present our FY26 consolidated income and balance sheet to provide full transparency into how your financial support is used. The Association's fiscal year runs from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026. The Association uses cash accounting but lines have been entered to recognize scholarship commitments made in FY26 that were not paid out during the fiscal year.

A summary of major activities includes:

• We partnered with the Classes of 2005, 2006, and 2007 to serve as their official financial partner. As part of this arrangement, we established to temporary funds to support their 20 Year Grand Reunion fundraiser. Through this program, the Classes provided a $1,000 donation to the Theater Program and sponsored the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association Tech Innovation Scholarship.
• Two Coach Geoffry Alan Haines Athletics Grants were awarded to support Crooms AoIT Athletics for a total of $600. This year was particularly exciting, as one grant was to a new program - Girls Flag Football - while the other was our first cross-sport application for volleyball and soccer.
• The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association Community Scholarship for $1,200 was awarded for the 20th Year.
• A $1,000 Tech Innovation Scholarship was awarded after a one year hiatus - sponsored by the Classes of 2005, 2006, and 2007.
• We awarded a a $500 Honorable Mention Scholarship for only the 4th time in 20 years.
• We continued depositing a portion of our fund balance for the second year into an interest-bearing CD to help generate an additional $167.43 of income this year.

A summary of our financials is detailed below:

• The Association started the year with a fund balance (excluding existing commitments) of $3,938.57 in the General Fund and $3,599.03 in the "Brick" Fund (the "Brick" Fund was established in FY22 following the launch of the Crooms AoIT Alumni Panther Walk and is intended to provide support to Crooms AoIT Athletics).
• After removing internal transfers, these two funds collected revenues of $4,581.54 were collected through memberships, donations, brick purchases, and other means - representing a 43% increase from FY25.
• After removing internal transfers, expenses of $1,854.88 were recognized- representing a 58% decrease largely driven by less scholarships being awarded in FY25 and no capital outlays expended on bricks in FY26. Overhead (from PayPal transaction fees) accounted for approximately 2.6% of all expenses for the year - highlighting the efficiency of operations.
• An additional $2,700 remains to be disbursed for scholarships awarded during FY26.
• Seperate from the above ongoing operations, two special funds were established to serve as financial custodians for the 2006-2007 Grand Reunion (more information below).

Fund balance (after commitments) stands at $7,564.26 representing a 19% increase from the end of the previous year (after accounting for scholarship commitments). $3,929.34 of this fund balance is unrestricted in the General Fund while $3,634.92 is restricted in the "Brick Fund".

The 2005-2007 Reunion Fund bought in $1,655 in ticket sales and ended with $278.33 is residual funds (after expenses) - which were transferred to the 2005-2007 Class Gift Fund to zero out the Fund. The 2005-2007 Class Gift Fund raised $1,260 in donations and $278.33 in transfers; it provided provided $1,499.13 in gifts (after PayPal expenses) - including $499.13 which was transferred to the General Fund to support the Tech Innovation Scholarship (which is encumbered for payment in the upcoming fiscal year).

Overall, we end the fiscal year in a fiscal year as we enter into the 2026-2027 fiscal year and celebrate #Crooms100. We hope you will join us in celebrating the #Crooms100 by visiting our special page dedicated to the occasion.

If you would like more details on our financials, we invite you review the attached spreadsheet which includes transaction level detail for the year. Donor information has been removed to protect the privacy of our donors. Do not hesitate to contact us if you should have any questions or concerns.

Thank you for your continued support.

The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association is proud to announce the winners of three (3) scholarships being awarded by the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association to the Class of 2026.

The $1,200 Crooms AoIT Alumni Association Community Scholarship is being awarded to Alexander H. The Community Scholarship is meant to honor a student not only for academic and extracurricular achievement, but also for dedication to community service. This year, through the multi-scholarship application process, we had over 20 applicants, all with different strengths: high GPAs, involvement in school activities, and community involvement. But, Alexander stuck out from this year's crowded pack of applicants for having all the above qualities while also being able to highlight how his experiences as a Boy Scout helped him grow as a person.

The Alumni Association is also proud to announce the return of the Tech Innovation Scholarship - sponsored by the Classes of 2005, 2006, and 2007 - after a one year hiatus. The Tech Innovation Scholarship recognizes a graduating senior who has used their technical acumen to create or contribute to a technological project or product. This student’s project stood out for his great work on programming a fun video game. The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association is pleased to present this year's $1,000 Tech Innovation Scholarship to Logan B.

Finally, the Alumni Association is also awarding an Honorable Mention scholarship this year. This is only the 4th time in 20 years that our review committee felt it warranted to recognize a student for their unique combination of volunteerism, leadership, athleticism, and professional work ethic. The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association is pleased to present a $500 scholarship to Aracelis S.

Congratulations, and best of luck to our scholarship winners, all of our applicants, and the Class of 2026 in your future endeavors. Go Panthers!

The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association, Inc. is proud to announce that it is providing this year’s Coach Geoffry Alan Haines Athletics Grant of $300 to two (2) different recipients:

• $300 will be awarded to the Girls Flag Football team to support operational expenses in the team's inaugural year.
• $300 will also be awarded to our first cross-sport application from the volleyball and soccer teams to support with purchasing a new sports camera.

The Alumni Association is excited to be able to support Panthers Athletics and the school with both starting a new sports team and a new capital investment - both of which will serve many Croomies now and into the future.

The money for this grant comes from a previously established Crooms AoIT Alumni Panther Walk athletics fund where alumni can purchase a brick with their name to be installed at our alma mater. Individuals interested in supporting the athletics grant program should consider purchasing a brick at https://brick.croomsalumni.com

Separately, the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association has partnered with the Crooms AoIT Athletics Department to create a specialized donation page that now available on the menu bar of the Crooms AoIT athletics page.

We would like to thank the Classes of 2005, 2006, and 2007 for sponsoring this year's Tech Innovation Scholarship.

The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association, Inc. is pleased to announce the release of the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association Tech Innovation Scholarship. The scholarship recognizes a Crooms AoIT graduating senior with a $1,000 scholarship in recognition of their technical acumen to create or contribute to a technological project or product, which could include:

• Open source software you’ve contributed to or created
• Animated or 3D video
• Live video project
• Website you have designed or built
• Video game you have designed or built
• Video game mods, maps, or scenarios
• Robotics project
• Network schematics
• Graphic design artwork
• Infographic
• Data visualization or dashboard
• Hardware design project (Arduino, Raspberry Pie, etc.)
• BPA, SECME, Art Club, Gamers Club, class, etc. technical project
• Any other technological project or product (including senior class portfolio projects)

The deadline for applications is Friday February 27, 2026 by 11:59pm. The scholarship recipient will be notified shortly thereafter. We look forward to answering any questions you might have and carefully reviewing all applications received. Remember, this scholarship is only open to graduating Crooms AoIT seniors, so your chances of receiving the scholarship are quite high! If you have any questions, please reach out to scholarship@croomsalumni.com
Graduating seniors can find the application here: https://forms.gle/3KZ6YhguVmzgF6Nw7

About the Tech Innovation Scholarship: The 2026 iteration of the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association Tech Innovation Scholarship marks the return of the program after a hiatus last year. This year marks the 10th iteration the Tech Innovation Scholarship. The scholarship is one of two scholarship programs sponsored by the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association - the other being the Crooms AoIT Alumni Association Community Scholarship, which is now in its 20th year of continuous offering and is included as part of the Crooms AoIT Multi-Scholarship Application (an application that allows for Crooms AoIT students to apply for 13 different scholarship programs in one application).

The Crooms AoIT Alumni Association is pleased to announce the launch of of the Coach Geoffry Alan Haines Athletics Grant application for the 2025-2026 school year. $300 is anticipated to be distributed during the Spring 2026 grant season; more may be available depending upon the review committee's decision. Multiple grants may be awarded, as such, applicants are encouraged to only apply for the amount they need. All funds distributed this season will be issued to a sporting team or athletic club, coach, or physical education program at Crooms Academy of Information Technology.

Since 2012, the Alumni Association's grant program has provided athletic clubs, sports teams, and school departments with financial support. In 2022 the grant program was renamed in memory of Coach Geoffry Alan Haines - Crooms AoIT's first athletics director. More information on the program is available on the Coach Geoffry Alan Haines Athletics Grant page. Community members looking to support the Grant Program are encouraged to support the Crooms AoIT Alumni Panther Walk Program which provides dedicated funding to the grant program.

Submission Deadline: 11:59pm January 30, 2026

Procedures and Reporting Requirements

1. Submit the application: Applications may be submitted by Google Form at https://forms.gle/TcswArcP1eMYrV8aA
2. Applications must be received by 11:59pm January 30, 2026
3. Applications will be reviewed by the Alumni Association’s Grants Committee. Distribution will occur in February 2026.
4. Input may be sought by the Grants Committee from the Athletic Director or school administrators.
5. You must submit a copy of the invoice supporting the monies spent within one year of receipt of the grant. Please return the invoice by e-mail to scholarship@croomsalumni.com