Nebo Education Foundation Gives Grants to Schools
The Nebo Education Foundation board met in December 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. Thank you to all those that so generously supported Nebo students through donations.
Congratulations to the following teachers that continue to inspire the minds of students.
Annette Draper – Wilson Elementary
Annette Draper, Librarian at Wilson Elementary said, “Thank you from Wilson Elementary School Library. We really appreciate this grant for books. It will help us update our old books and get new ones for our students to check out. A lot of our books when I became the librarian 91/2 years ago, were published in the 1950's to the 1970's. We have worked hard to update our books, so the students would be excited about reading. Due to all the great efforts of our faculty and staff, we have accomplished a huge increase in reading. The students are excited and want to check out our new books. Reading is an important part of our library and new books help us to succeed in this area. Thank you again from all the students, faculty, staff and especially the librarian for helping us achieve our goal to get more new books.”
Cookie Barron – Park Elementary
“How many ways can I say "Thank You!" Due to the generosity of the Nebo Foundation's grant money, every Park Elementary special education self-contained and resource students will now have the opportunity to work at his/her math ability level. At the same time, the purchase of the Number Worlds Level C math program enables each student to have his/her own leveled math text booklet. What a thrilling privilege not only for the Sped teachers but also for the students. The Number Worlds Leveled Intervention Math Program supplies individual student text booklets, all relevant lesson manipulates, and a teacher's manual. This math program is also aligned with our current Utah Common Core. Truly, what more could any teacher ask for! Thank you each and every member of the Nebo Foundation!” exclaimed Cookie, special education teacher at Park Elementary.
Brenda McFarland – Spring Lake Elementary
Brenda, at Spring Lake Elementary said, “I am so excited about receiving this grant. I will be buying my students new leveled readers that are just right for them. I so appreciate the Nebo Education Foundation for supporting my classroom. My students love books and it is my hope to teach them to be life long learners and readers. Thanks again for the support.”
Heide Taylor – Larsen Elementary
“The Nebo Foundation helped me purchase high quality, lower level Usborne chapter books for my classroom. I have many emergent readers who are excited about chapter books but there are not many options to choose from for first graders. The foundation is also helping me purchase some art books to teach basic drawing skills to my students. I appreciate the Foundation and the ease of the process to acquire the materials that will improve instruction for my students. The Nebo Foundation is a great resource for teachers!” exclaimed Heide Taylor at Larsen Elementary.
Andy Hunsaker – Spanish Fork High
Andy, theatre teacher at Spanish Fork High said, “We are going to purchase UNIQUE and hand-made actor training masks. They are used in a studio-style conservatory class in advanced acting classes at SFHS. They are used in connection to Libby Appel's "Mask Characterization" text and workshops. It is a style of acting that helps the actor cover with a mask to uncover the inner workings of DYNAMIC characters and give the students a fully enveloped process that they can carry with them in many aspects of life. The masks granted are essential to this process.”
Maughn Wright – Mapleton Junior High
“I received a grant to purchase 40 Calculators to be used in my class room. This means I will be able provide each student with a calculator that they can use on the majority of their assignments and tests. In the past I have had students share calculators or allowed them to use their cell phone as a calculator. Sharing calculators and using cell phones for calculators had some drawbacks. I would often see students texting or playing games on their phone instead using it as a calculator. I'm way excited that I will now have enough calculators for each student and there will be no need for students to have their cell phones out during class! I am extremely grateful for grant from Nebo Foundation,” stated Maughn Wright, math teacher at Mapleton Junior High.
Britany Stokes – Salem Junior High
Britany, math teacher at Salem Junior High said, “I was SO EXCITED to receive the grant!! One of my students even remarked after the fact that it looked like I was going to cry, and I almost did. I had been trying all semester to figure out how to get the gel boards for my class and this was the only way it was ever going to happen. It will make a huge difference in the effectiveness of my formative assessment efforts.
“Gel boards are used in the place of white boards. A magnet in the shape of a pen is used to make iron filings stick to the surface and reveal writing. My students can then solve problems on them and show me, making it a quick way for me to give feedback, personalized instruction, and to be able to judge the understanding of the class as a whole. It also helps the students get immediate feedback and resolve any problems or misunderstandings they may be having. I also love them because I don't have to be using and constantly replacing dry erase markers and erasers, and the boards last for a long time. I am so grateful for the grant, and will be using the boards in my classroom on a regular basis!! I can never thank the foundation enough.”
Nikki Mendenhall – Salem Junior High
Nikki Mendenhall, math teacher at Salem Junior High said, “I was given a ‘Study Hall’ class this year, and it's been a challenge to figure out how to best help the students achieve in that class and help them get their missing assignments done. One thing I've noticed as the students have been working is that they have assignments that need to be completed on a computer, and they had no way of working on them while in my classroom. I asked for the grant in order to have a couple of computers in my room so that my students could not be as limited with what they could work on during class. I really appreciate what the Nebo Education Foundation has done - helping to get those laptops for my room so my students can accomplish a little more. I couldn't have done it without their help. Thank you so much!”
Jamie Pintar – East Meadows Elementary
“I currently have six iPads in my classroom that are used for educational purposes. My students use the iPads to access researched based reading programs such as RAZ kids, Reading A-Z, and Headsprout. They also use the iPads to research topics and ideas for writing and to access other researched based intervention programs for both math and reading. To ensure the longevity of the iPad, I would like durable cases that can withstand everyday student use. IPad for Angels offers iPads cases that can withstand everyday use and protect the iPads in case of accidental damage and everyday wear and tear. Thank you so much for everything and all the Nebo Foundation does for our students,” stated Jamie Pintar, a special education teacher at East Meadows Elementary.
Lori Cunningham – Maple Mountain High
