Nebo Education Foundation Funds Grants in March

Submitted by ts on

The Nebo Education Foundation board met in March and approved the following grants.

Mapleton Junior


Tim Thompson, teacher on special assignment; Scott Johnson, assistant principal; Suzanne Kimball, principal; Gayle Gammell, foundation board member; Susan Frischknecht, foundation treasurer

Nebo Education Foundation awarded a technology grant to Mapleton Junior (MJHS) this month for audio enhancements.

“First of all, we want to thank the Nebo Education Foundation,” said Tim Thompson, a teacher on special assignment at MJHS.

Mapleton Junior’s administration stated, “We feel the basics of learning begin with hearing. This concept is so fundamental that we often take it for granted and overlook its importance. At Mapleton Jr. High we continually seek for ways to ensure that all of our students have access to the information being presented in class by their teachers and also by other students. With increasingly large class sizes, it sometimes becomes difficult for all students to clearly hear what the teacher is describing. In an effort to remove this barrier, we have looked for ways to provide all of our classrooms with audio enhancement equipment. Audio enhancements are used to project the teacher’s voice, as well as other educational information, over a speaker system in the classroom. We feel that these systems will dramatically improve the student’s ability to hear the teacher, and will directly impact our students’ academic achievement.”

Mt. Loafer and Canyon Elementary


Lynda Hales, foundation president; Jill Rucker, literacy specialist; Alicia Rudd, principal; Lana Hiskey, foundation director

Mt. Loafer and Canyon Elementary received literacy grants this month.

Jill Rucker, literacy specialist for both Mt. Loafer and Canyon Elementary, said, “Thank you for the wonderful books. I am excited to use them in classrooms as I teach reading and writing strategies at Canyon and Mt. Loafer Elementary schools.

Rees Elementary


Lynda Hales, foundation president; Doreen Snyder, teacher; Jed Mitchell, foundation board member

Nebo Education Foundation awarded a literacy grant to Rees Elementary for their special education classes.

Doreen Snyder said, “We are so excited to receive this grant from the Nebo Foundation! In our special education class, we use the Reading Milestones Program which enables students with disabilities to read and comprehend books up to a third grade level. Several of our students have made so much progress they have completed Reading Milestones and are ready to move on to more difficult levels. With this grant we will be able to purchase Reading Bridges which is an extension of Reading Milestones for the fourth and fifth grade reading levels. This program is highly visual and enables students with learning disabilities and autism to demonstrate reading comprehension despite communication barriers that might exist. We also will be able to purchase additional readers to supplement our Reading Milestones program so the students can have their own copy and not have to share the books. Thank you so much for the grant and the opportunity it will give our students to increase their reading skills. We really appreciate your generosity.”

Springville High School


Lana Hiskey, foundation director; Gayle Gammell, foundation board member, Lanell Rabner, librarian; John DeGraffenried, principal

English classes at Springville High School received a grant for $350 to help fund literacy books.

Librarian, Lanell Rabner, said, “The Springville High School Senior English classes, Cornerstone, and one of our self-contained Resource classes will be finishing the year with an inquiry unit based on the power of the human spirit in overcoming adversity. With Karen Hesse's ‘Out of the Dust’ as the primary print text, students will use historical documents, film documentaries, and musical enrichment materials to examine lessons learned from the Great Depression, such as resourcefulness, courage, compassion, and the efficacy of family. Final projects will include ways to implement these lessons in our personal lives, school, and community. Thanks again Nebo Foundation for making this unit of study possible.”

Sage Creek Elementary


Gayle Gammell, foundation board member; Pamela Tippets, sixth-grade teacher; Natalie Call, principal

Nebo Education Foundation awarded a fine arts grant to Sage Creek Elementary for sixth grade.

Principal Natalie Call said, "We are excited to receive funds that will help us expand our fine arts curriculum and integrate these concepts and objectives into our regular academic curricula. Without these funds, we would be unable to purchase the costumes, rhythm instruments and music needed to make the integration of fine arts and academia possible. On behalf of everyone at Sage Creek, we would like to express our heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the Nebo Foundation for helping to make great things happen at our school."