Nebo Education Foundation Gives Grants to Schools

Submitted by lana.hiskey on

The Nebo Education Foundation board met on May 3, 2016, to discuss the many grants and needs across the district. This Foundation Board functions through generous donations made by individuals and businesses as well as fundraisers where all the money goes to educate students in Nebo School District. 

One fund-raising effort is the annual “Green Fever” golf tournament that helps fund these various grants throughout the year.  The “Green Fever” tournament will be Thursday, May 19, 2016. Thank you to all those that so generously supported Nebo students.

Congratulations to the following teachers that continue to inspire the minds of students. 

Orchard Hills Elementary – Ken Wilson
Ken Wilson, PE teacher at Orchard Hills Elementary, said, “We are so grateful for the grant. Our dance festival has been a fun event for Orchard Hills Elementary for several years. The dance festival began as an activity for the students to show each other what they have learned in dance.  It has grown to attract an audience of parents, grandparents, and alumni as well as retired faculty. Due to our inadequate sound system, we thought we might have to discontinue the dance festival.  Thanks to the Nebo Foundation, we will be able to continue our dance festival well into the future. Thank you again.”

Payson Junior – Don Smith
“It was great to have you all visit my class room today! Thank you all for awarding our great students the grant for the calculators! We are very excited to have the benefit of the up-to-date technology which will be a great help to my students for years to come. As part of the core curriculum, students are required to learn how to operate graphing calculators and be able to use them to complete the prescribed course work. This is an important skill for our students to become proficient with in today’s technology intensive society. The Nebo Foundation grant we received will be used to replace the now worn out classroom set that has served my students well for over fifteen years.  The grant received from the Nebo Foundation will now allow the students to benefit from a complete, fully functioning, up-to-date set calculators required in their studies. By putting these powerful learning tools in the hands of our students, the Nebo Foundation has helped empower these children to gain the skills needed to build the future of our nation,” stated Don Smith, math teacher at Payson Junior.

Mapleton Junior – Cami Burton
“We are so appreciative of the Nebo Foundation and the donors in awarding us this money for the purchase of iPads in our classroom. For my masters thesis at BYU, I researched using iPads/video self-modeling to aid in academic learning in the classroom and access to the common core--the results were significant. We will be using the iPads to assist in our mathematics, English, science, life and social skills classes and to greater access the curriculum. The students will be given assignments through the iPads and will also be able to participate in classroom activities more fully with the iPads. We also have students who will use Apps on the iPads as a means of communication. I am excited to use more technology in our class to help enhance the learning and engagement of our students,” stated Cami Burton, special education teacher at Mapleton Junior.

Maple Ridge Elementary – Becky Manning

“I am truly grateful to the Nebo Education Foundation for funding my grant to purchase Hot Dots pens and cards. I have been looking for ways to make my independent literacy activities be more engaging and hands-on for my third grade students. I learned about these pens at a conference I attended and decided these pens and cards would be a more engaging way to practice literacy concepts than a traditional worksheet. I am excited to have this additional option for literacy activities while I am teaching reading to small groups of students. This grant is going to help make independent work time more fun for students while having a positive impact on students’ literacy skills. Thank you Nebo Education Foundation for supporting students and teachers in Nebo School District!” exclaimed Becky Manning, third-grade teacher at Maple Ridge Elementary.

Spanish Fork Junior – Gaylynn Parker
Gaylynn Parker, English teacher at Spanish Fork Junior High said, “The seventh-grade language arts team at Spanish Fork Junior High School is very excited and grateful to the Nebo Education Foundation for the generous grant which was matched by our school principal, Dwight Liddiard, allowing us to purchase additional novel sets for our department library. These new books, selected from the science-fiction/ fantasy genre, will give our seventh-grade students an opportunity to delve further into the wonderful world of reading. Our students will be enjoying this generous gift from the foundation for many years to come. Thank you for helping us to help the students we love.” 

Spanish Fork High – Michelle Fish
Michelle Fish, English teacher at Spanish Fork High said, “The grant will be used to replace books used for English 1010. Our books are more than 10 years old, so the edition we have is outdated. Several books are missing pages or even entire sections. Often students have had to share books during class in order to complete reading assignments. Having an entirely new class set is really going to benefit the students. Further, we will be able to purchase the latest edition that includes some important information that the edition we currently use does not have. The text itself is extremely helpful in teaching students how to write. I honestly couldn't see using the books we have now for another year. I really appreciate the funds and can't wait to order the new books.”

Bridges – Kay Thomas-Perkins
Kay Thomas-Perkins said, “Thank you so much for accepting our request for matching funds.  We are going to use the money to purchase adult 3-wheeled bikes.  Our students have loved learning how to ride these bikes and love doing it each day.  This offers another way to exercise as well as provides for some of our students a way of transportation since most of them do not have a driver’s license.  We really appreciate the Nebo Foundation donating to such a worthy great group of individuals.  These kids are breaking a trail for future students, and they are doing a great job at it.  Again thank you so much for providing us with this opportunity.”

Other grant
Brockbank – Sixth Grade Team

The Nebo Education Foundation is composed of 20 volunteer board members who live in cities serviced by Nebo School District.  Board members meet each month to review and award grant requests, consider fund-raising avenues and other items that advance the educational opportunities for Nebo School District students. Many of the donations received are for selected projects, yet a substantial amount is available for the greatest need. Greatest need monies are considered for grants submitted by area schools.

Anyone interested in the Nebo Education Foundation or who wish to make a donation for education is encouraged to contact Lana Hiskey by email lana [dot] hiskey [at] nebo [dot] edu, by phone 801-354-7400, or mail 350 South Main, Spanish Fork, UT 84660.