The North Suffolk Rotary Club donated $6,875 to the Renaissance School for the Arts on Thursday at the school at the Family Life Center at Ebenezer Church.

“The school is part of the North Suffolk community,” said Rob Estes, new president of the North Suffolk Rotary Club. “That definitely resonated with the club.”

Because Rotary’s main focus is on ending polio, as well as some other international issues, the club were excited to be a part of something that was more local to them, Estes said. “Our goal, really is to partner with R.S.A.,” Estes said of the school.

When looking for an organization to fund, an organization’s sustainability is very important, he said. He likened their donation to growing plants and the expectation they will bear fruit. “We’re trying to plant some seeds along the way,” he said.

The school provides courses for pre-school through high school, and primarily focuses on the visual and performing arts. However, the school is growing, since it recently added a program for classes such as science, technology and math. More than 200 students enrolled in the school last year.

Norma Andes, executive director, referred to the school as a “hybrid co-op.”

“Anyone can come here,” she said. While classes are held at a church, the program is not religiously affiliated, Andes said. They are also not solely teaching home-schooled children, although those are the majority of their students. The school is also open to public and private students, Andes said.

Over the years, many students have graduated and gone off to college to study subjects similar to the courses they have taken at Renaissance. One is now planning to double major in computer science and music at William and Mary, Andes said. Another student is going to Butler University to study ballet.

Estes had heard about the school from some people he knows, so he contacted the directors about putting together a wishlist for the supplies they could most use, he said. The list totaled $6,875. Some of the items on the list included portable dry erase boards, a small public address system, C.D. player, some headsets, shelves and more.

Every year the Rotary Club can apply for a grant up to $5,000, Estes said. The club decided to put the entire grant towards the school and include the leftover supplies by contributing $1,875 of their club money. These funds are made up of club membership fees and fundraised money, he said.

“We’d love to have a bigger building, but we love being here,” Andes said of another one of the school’s needs.

As a performing arts program, it’s important to have a stage to perform on. The church’s stage is sometimes unavailable, as it’s being used for church functions, and it lacks the acoustics needed for the kind of programs put on by the school, she said. If anyone is interested in offering use of their stage, contact the school at rsatidewater@gmail.com.

To learn more about the program, go to rsatidewater.org.