Jim Fair
The Greater Greer Education Foundation presented $16,550 inj grant money to 15 school and community projects Thursday. Award winners present are left to right: Jamie Garrett, Sara Arndt, Andrea Moore, Lisa Hall, Jenny Hunter, Kim Derring, Tonya Williams, Diane Jackson, Susan Ward, Karen Cummings, Alicia Keller and Jane Mills.
Jim Fair
On the cover: Jamie Garrett, middle, received a $1,270 grant to purchase iPads to use in the Teacher Cadet Program. Assistant principal Tecora Prince is left and David Dolge, right, a director of the Foundation who handed out the grants.
The grants, made possible by funds from the October 2013 Education Gala, ranged from $400 to $1,500.
Debbie Holcombe, a physical education teacher at J.F. Byrnes High School, has received a grant from the Foundation for the past three years. The grant provides resources for the FIGHT (Friends Into Getting Health Together) Club to train and participate in the Lifepoint 5K race in Charleston.
“Our FIGHT club provides a program that empowers each participant with the knowledge and experience to develop a healthy active lifestyle through exercise, nutrition education and activities in a positive supportive environment,” Holcombe said.
“The 5K race, sponsored by the GGEF for the past three years, provides an incentive and reward to encourage these students to persevere in their journey to make healthy decisions apart of their every day lives.”
Dr. Colleen Keith, president of Spartanburg of Spartanburg Methodist College and a member of the board, had this to say about the grants program:
“The breadth of issues that the grant applications to the Greater Greer Education Foundation revealed is staggering,” she said. “Teachers and those involved in the arts and child care are doing some amazing things without the best materials possible. To be able to grant a request for technology that can be used to help a child learn and improve the classroom experience brings those of us on the Foundation board great joy, and we know we are meeting a critical need.
“The Foundation plays a crucial partnership role in education: we are working to provide what our classrooms may not otherwise be able to provide and by doing so, we are improving lives."
Margaret Burch, Foundation chairman, commented that each year the foundation has been able to help teachers and students with more funding than the year before. “We are grateful for the support of the citizens and business community who have embraced our vision and joined us in enhancing educational opportunities in the Greater Greer Area,” she said.
The 2014 grants were awarded to:
Middle Tyger Community Center/Lisa Hall – $1,500
The grant will be used to provide adult education, childcare, parent and child together time and parenting enrichment, with a goal of breaking the cycle of poverty among families and help them achieve family sufficiency.
Tigerville Elementary School/C. Diane Jackson – $1,500
The grant will provide iPad minis to give all students at Tigerville more access to leveled reading books.
Chandler Creek Elementary School/Alicia Keller – $1,500
The grant will be used to create a new tutoring and mentoring program, consisting of parent representatives, school representatives and community members who all agree that the school needs a systemic, student focused approach to identifying and responding to students at risk of falling behind.
Reidville Elementary School/Tonya Williams – $1,500
The grant will be used to promote science learning by increasing access to an interactive, hands on science program for students.
Greer Middle School/Serena D. Cox – $1,480
The grant will be used for incorporating technology and engineering concepts into standardized instruction through STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) programs.
Skyland Elementary School/Carol C. Godfrey – $1,450
The grant will be used to engage and motivate student readers through the use of children’s literature and music.
Mountain View Elementary School/Jenny Hunter – $1,350
The grant will be used to incorporate Hooked with Nooks in the classroom, to enhance, inspire and improve young readers with materials and instruction that fit their individual levels of development.
Greer High School/Jamie Garrett – $1,270
The grant will be used to purchase iPads to use in the Teacher Cadet Program, where students will create lessons for elementary or middle school math, science or foreign language classes.
James F. Brynes Freshman Academy/Shancie S. Burnett – $1,250
The grant will be used to help reach a goal of increasing active engagements in learning mathematical concepts and skills and raising levels of mathematical competency in struggling learners through the use of an Interwrite board.
Lyman Elementary/Karen Cummings – $1,100
The grant will be used to improve math and science skills in 3rd grade classrooms by offering students a year of hands-on activities using everyday household items.
Greer High School/Sara Arndt – $800
The grant will be used to incorporate the Senteo Interactive Response System in classrooms, which will allow teachers to create questions that students can electronically and automatically respond to via a wireless clicker.
James F. Byrnes High School/Debbie Holcombe – $500
The grant will be used to continue the FIGHT weight loss/get fit program, which provides students with an opportunity to participate in a program that promotes a healthy active lifestyle through exercise, nutrition education and activities in a supportive environment.
Tigerville Elementary School/Felicia Jo Kitchens – $500
The grant will be used to purchase Leveled Reader sets that support Science Standards in the classroom.
Tigerville Elementary School/Susan Ward – $450
The grant will be used to purchase an iPad mini to use as an instructional center to help with small group and individualized learning in a variety of subjects.
Dunbar CDC/Kathleen Wienand – $400
The grant will be used to purchase a Sono Flex app that will allow students to develop a consistent core vocabulary that can be utilized in a wide range of social situations.
David Dolge, chairman of the Grants Committee, said he found this year's decisions were difficult because the grant applications were all so strong and deserving. “Our schools and teachers are doing incredible work for the students in the Greater Greer area and they deserve our help,” he said.
The Foundation serves 27 schools in Greenville and Spartanburg counties.