Nebo Education Foundation Gives Grants April 2017

Submitted by lana.hiskey on

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.

These grants are funded through the fund-raising efforts of the Nebo Education Foundation board. 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 18, 2017. Also, the foundation accepts donations from individuals and businesses to support projects. Congratulations to the following teachers that continue to bless the lives of students.

Spanish Fork High – Jennifer Heder, Clint Roberts, Stephanie Searcy
Jennifer Heder, choir teacher said, “We have been raising funds for a new Wenger Acoustical Shell for the last year. We plan to have all the funds necessary by December 2017. The current shell is old and takes quite a crew to set up before each performance. The new shell will be better suited to fit the needs of the many musical groups that perform in the Spanish Fork High School Auditorium. Acoustically the new shell will produce an overall better sound, have ease of set-up, and will be more aesthetically pleasing. We are incredibly grateful for the grant from Nebo Education Foundation! This grant helps enormously to get a new shell on the SFHS stage! Thank you so much!”

Larsen Elementary – Kris Robison
Kris Robison, computer teacher, said, “Thank you so much for the grant that you have given to me for my computer lab at Larsen Elementary. We use a program called Imagine Learning that helps our students with reading and phonics. We needed a way to help the kids record themselves reading and pronouncing the words, so that they could hear themselves speak, and therefore, improve their pronunciation and reading. With this grant we will be purchasing adapters to microphones that will allow this process to happen. It means that our students will be able to improve on their reading which is paramount to their success. It will impact students here at Larsen, now and for years to come. My goal is to teach and help students improve, and you have provided another way to help me achieve that goal. Thank you again, it means so much to be supported in helping our students succeed. There is no greater joy to me than to see children succeed and improve.”

“We really appreciate the Nebo Foundation recognizing the needs of the students at Larsen Elementary. We have been using an intervention program for our students called Imagine Learning. This program allows students to interact with the program through voice recognition activities. With the money donated by the Nebo Foundation, we will be purchasing adaptors to allow the voice component to work. This is a huge benefit for students to be able to listen to their reading and work to improve their fluency. Thanks to the foundation, we really appreciate your support!” exclaimed Principal Cami Thomas.

Larsen Elementary – Fifth-Grade Team
Dylan Lawter, fifth-grade teacher said, “Thank you so much for the grant! We are excited to get new Chromebooks in our classroom. These Chromebooks will provide students many opportunities to explore technology in writing projects, math learning, and the science research that we do. This means a lot to us because when students learn to utilize technology for education purposes in the classroom, it will become a habit that they can carry with them both in and out of school.”

“A BIG thanks to the Nebo Foundation for the generous donation to Larsen Elementary. Our School Community Council and the Faculty at Larsen are hoping with Trustlands funds, and any grants awarded to our school, that we are able to have one to one devices for all students in grades fourth through sixth. Thanks to the Nebo Foundation we will currently be one to one with our fifth and sixth grade students, and we will be half way to fourth grade being one to one as well. This is so awesome for Larsen students as we have many uses for the devices. Students can access programs to reinforce skills in all academic content areas. One example of the programs we use is MyOn. Our school has maximized the use of this program through this school year as it was given to us as a trial. It has access to a wide variety of books which are given to students at there individual reading level. Teachers can also assign projects and reading to students, who then use Chromebooks to complete these assignments. Larsen teachers have done a great job trying to integrate technology into all areas of their curriculum, and this will allow more flexibility and opportunity for student's learning and growth. Thank you for your continued support!” exclaimed Principal Cami Thomas.

Sierra Bonita Elementary – Dana Beckert
Dana Beckert, facilitator at Sierra Bonita said, “Thank you so much for the Foundation’s support! With the grant money awarded to our school, we will be purchasing multiple sets of books for our school’s leveled library. To better meet the needs of the teachers in providing interesting texts for their students, I asked teachers to provide me with a list of titles that their students would find engaging and interesting. It is good to provide additional titles to our leveled library so teachers and students have a variety of high interest texts. This grant will provide texts specifically asked for by our students and teachers. High interest texts will help students across the grade levels become more motivated and active readers. Thank you again for helping us provide this much needed resource.”

Mapleton Ridge Elementary – Denette Steen
Denette Steen, music teacher said, “The Nebo Education Foundation made my ordinary Tuesday extraordinary! I have so much gratitude for the donors and their interest in helping my students. I have the pleasure of teaching Elementary students music once a week. Almost 500 students walk through my classroom. It is my job to help them explore music and LOVE music! We will be using the money granted to our school to purchase Ukulele's. Nothing beats watching a child explore with an instrument in their hands. Ukulele's are perfect for both the young student and an adult like me. Maple Ridge students could not be happier!”

Mt. Loafer Elementary – Jen Lundquist
“We are ecstatic about our Science Grant from Nebo Education Foundation. We are building a 4th Grade Interactive Science Experiment Supplies and Demonstration Cart. Our science program is set up with various experiments for hands on experiences for the students. Supplies have been purchased previously by teachers on our team. Many items are needing to be replaced. We are excited to purchase books and supplies to coordinate with our science units. Thank you so much for helping us create lasting impressions in our students lives by offering them a variety of resources to enhance their learning. We LOVE working with the Nebo Education Foundation.” stated, Jen Lundquist, fourth-grade teacher at Mt. Loafer.

Payson High – Marilyn Miller
“Thank you Foundation Board. The new gloves will be a lot safer to play with than the old ones that were falling apart. The students will love them.” said Marilyn Miller, physical education teacher.

Payson Junior – Anne Purcell
Anne Purcell, math teacher, said, “I want to thank you so much for your generous donation to my grant. This grant will supply the students at Payson Junior High with scientific calculators they use everyday in their math classes. Many students at Payson Junior are unable to buy their own calculators, but this gift will help them have the tools necessary to be proficient in math. Thank you for your support in providing resources to our students' education and for your dedication to their success.”

Spring Lake Elementary – Ben Atkin
“I have to admit when I first saw strangers coming into the testing room, I wondered what it was all about. I was worried I had done something wrong. Well I was wrong, thank goodness. It was the wonderful ladies from the Nebo Foundation. It is so amazing they are willing to take the time out of their day to deliver the check. Thank you so much for your support in education,” said Ben Atkin, fourth-grade teacher. “I wrote a grant for some non-fiction books to help us with our science and writing teaching this year. We have to teach about animal adaptations, biomes, and plants and animals of Utah. It is a really fun subject to teach but almost impossible to do without a text book. These full color books will work great for getting the kids excited about animals. They will help inspire kids to read and learn about the animals found in the books. They work great for science but they also can be used for reference photos when we teach art, and for informational writing. The kids will be able to access the information in fun and exciting ways. Thank You Nebo Foundation!”

Orchard Hills Elementary – Robin Wheatley
Robin Wheatly said, “On behalf of Orchard Hills, I would like to thank the Nebo Foundation for their generous donation. This money will be used to purchase over 50 sets of books for our guided reading library. Many of the books purchased will be specifically for struggling readers. They need books written at their instructional level but that also appeal to their interests. This grant will also fund fiction books for emergent, transitional, and fluent readers. I can’t wait to get these books into the hands of our students!”

Rees Elementary – Rachelle Orton
“What a exciting surprise last week when the Nebo Foundation came to my room to present a check for my grant for new iPads!  My students are still talking about it!  I will be using the new iPads as student devices in my resource room.  I love the capabilities of an iPad with all students K-6.  iPads are very easy to use even with younger students K-3 who have not yet developed keyboard skills and are still learning letter and number recognition.  I have also used iPads extensively with older students in Reading and Math.  iPads have helped me facilitate quick assessments, differentiate learning and engage students.  This is so important in 30 minute pull-out groups.  This grant will allow my students to have 1:1 technology which will facilitate their learning in a way that will benefit each child. Thank you so much Nebo Foundation!” said Rachelle Orton.

Oakridge – Jason Shelley
"Thank you for the generous grant. We are very excited to be able to provide our students the the devices they need to communicate.  The grant will be used to purchase specific students communication devices such as an italk 2 that helps in making choices.  There will even be a machine that has 100 prerecorded vocabulary words.  Devices like that help the student talk using words any other students use to talk about every day activities.  This will make it possible to support the language development of many of our students.  Thanks again!" exclaimed Jason Shelley.

Other grants awarded include:
Santaquin Elementary – Chad Argyle
 

Attributions
Lana Hiskey