Meghan Mellor Trulaske Miers had a creative, philanthropic spirit that will live on in the Portland Public Schools, thanks in part to a generous gift in her memory. Meghan’s family has made a very generous pledge to the Foundation for Portland Public Schools (FPPS) over five years to enrich learning experiences for students.

Before she passed away in April 2024, Meghan was an active volunteer at her children’s school,  Ocean Avenue Elementary School. She was also a passionate advocate for a range of issues, including education, the arts, renewable energy, and organic farming. She was deeply involved with several local nonprofit organizations and was herself a generous philanthropist. 

“When I first met Meghan in 2022, she was interested in making a gift to support the Portland Public Schools. What was amazing to me was her level of commitment to letting teachers decide how the money would be spent,” said Andrea Weisman Summers, Executive Director of the Foundation for Portland Public Schools. “She wanted to direct her first major gift to support music and the arts, because that was where ‘she felt most at home’ during her own schooling. But she wanted music and art teachers, as those closest to the work, to make decisions on how specifically to invest the funds.”

To honor that sentiment, the donation from Meghan’s family will expand the FPPS Equity and Innovation Staff Grants Program. The FPPS grant program recognizes, rewards, and supports teachers’ work to inspire students and improve learning outcomes. 

Thanks in large part to the donation from Meghan’s family, FPPS just awarded 111 grants to Portland Public Schools staff.  These grants will benefit almost twice as many student experiences than in prior years. Examples of the funded projects include materials for 5th-grade students at Reiche Elementary School to build bridges; equipment for Lyman Moore Middle School students to create a school newspaper; and bringing in a professional actor/director to Casco Bay High School to help students understand and perform Shakespeare.