Close your eyes and remember your favorite learning moment.  It could have been in a classroom setting or on the job or somewhere else.  It could have happened last week, last year or several years ago.  Picture it for a moment and reflect was there a teacher involved?  Now maybe this was a classroom teacher, but it could have been a mentor, a coach, or a boss.  We’re guessing there was an adult that cared about that learning moment as much as you did.  An teacher that believed you were worth their time and energy.  Those are the kinds of teachers that we recognize with our 2016/17 grant awards.  Teachers that put all of themselves into creating new learning moments.  They are what the Foundation is all about – investing in difference makers for all our students.

Last fall, a team of community leaders, faculty members, and administrators reviewed over $80,000 in requests to pilot projects that would enhance student engagement, instruction, or the education experience in general.  The following 19 projects were selected.  Now these teachers will apply those funds to benefit thousands of students, share lessons learned with colleagues, and continue to drive inquiry in HSE schools.

Join us in congratulating:

• Scott Henderson (DES) DeskCycles
• Marcia Abraham (FCE) Drumming to Develop 21^st Century Skills
• Sherri Parkison (FCE) for Plein Air Painting
• Denise Jarrett (FES) Growing Starts Here
• Angela Hampton (HPE) Learning with SPRK
• Lauren Avery (HRE) for Project Monarch
• Will Hurst and Andrew Foreman (HRE) for Rocket Parkour
• Stacy Peters (NBE) for Kindergarten Light Exploration
• Susan Bill (TCE) for Inquiring Kindergarten Minds
• Sarah Griffey (TCE) for StratoStar
• Adam Jahn (FCI) for 3D Printer Epitomizes STEM Education
• Brad Lowell (FCI) for STEM Explosion
• Jennifer Shults (FCI) for DRUM (Diversity, Respect, and Understanding through Music)
• Alexander King (SCI) for Vive for All
• Jennifer Renfro (SCI) for Exploring STEAM
• Nick Tschuor (FCJH) for 3D Printer for TechEd
• Bob Rice (HIJH) for Learning Heredity, Genetics, and Evolution
• Rachel Hiatt (FCJH) for Oh the Places We Can Go in STEM
• Daniel Moosbrugger (HSEHS) for Drawing in the Digital Realm
• Kimberly Pelton and Jeanne Peters (District/RSI) for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Connection

Learn the details on these innovative projects here!