ROCHESTER, N.Y. – A local philanthropist is making an impact on Rochester City School District elementary schools through a combination of academic support. 

The Smile Program, which touches 26 schools across the Rochester City School District, started more than a decade ago with just one school. Dave Beck, the 2025 ESL Heart of Service Award winner, left the business world to help thousands of children.

The program reaches over 11,000 Pre-K through 6th-grade students in the 2024/25 school year.

“I knew that one of the things I wanted to do was pay back into the community, and I wanted to do it in the schools,” Beck said.

The Smile Program aims to ensure young students enjoy going to school and learning. Beck brings unique experiences to the classroom, such as a hot air balloon lesson where students explore inside the balloon.

“So we bring a hot air balloon to the school, and we separate the basket from the balloon,” Beck said. “The basket is outside. The balloon comes inside. We have a quick lesson that we give the kids in the gym, and then we inflate the balloon, and the kids go inside the balloon. And we’ve had 200 plus kids inside the balloon at one time for a second lesson about how it’s made.”

The program also offers students the chance to learn about whales and explore a life-size version. Beck believes giving children choices in their education is crucial.

News10NBC’s Kristi Blake: “I look around this library and see the murals and knowing the children helped decide what it was going to look like, what does it make the kids feel when they get to make the decisions?”

Dave Beck: “It’s wonderful. It grows them up fast, and it makes them feel very good about their day. We set a higher bar. I have yet to establish a bar that they haven’t been able to climb up to.

The program impacts not only students but also Beck himself.

“I go home every day laughing about something that, that, that some child did that just made me smile,” Beck said. “So, you know, it’s kind of like the smile program aimed at the children. But again, I’m a perfect example. It makes my day.”

In addition to the Smile Program sponsorship, Beck volunteers 30-40 hours a week in the schools, primarily at School #23 and School #15. A significant portion of this time is dedicated to developing and implementing an accelerated math program for elementary school students. 

The program has evolved into a pilot where students are tutored in math topics beyond the typical elementary math curriculum, with some students even preparing for and excelling on the Algebra 1 high school Regents exam.

To facilitate the growth and broadening of this program, discussions are underway with members of the University of Rochester Math Department to increase the number of college student tutors available to work with RCSD students. Currently, 40-50 RIT College Students are involved in the program.

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