LaPlace – Marathon Ashland Petroleum, LLC and East St. John Elementary School are proud to announce their partnership to provide educational assistance and material resources to students at the local school. This new program is part of Marathon Ashland’s continuing efforts to provide support to local residents and educational facilities. In order to increase employee participation in the program, Marathon Ashland has donated one hour of company time (on a biweekly basis) for employees to work with students at the school. Many activities have already been planned for this school year. Activities include: Tutoring fourth grade students for the LEAP Test, mentoring programs, school to career days, assisting in coaching soccer and conducting simple science experiments. The local refinery is also assisting in beautification efforts at the school by relocating twenty trees from the refinery to the school grounds. Currently, the program is still in its infancy. The employees at Marathon Ashland are very excited about the program and have graciously volunteered their time to assist with these activities. Jerry “Texx” Galloway, Principal at East St. John Elementary, is looking forward to a long and productive relationship with Marathon Ashland and believes the program will have a positive impact on the students.