Spring 2017 Innovative Teaching GrantsOn Monday, May 22, the Corsicana Education Foundation awarded $75,280.00 through 22 grants. In addition to fall and spring grants, CEF funded classroom supplies and projects through Teacher and Campus Wish Lists at the C&B Seen Gala for $24,548.62.
Bengal Bake Shop
Amount: $1,015.00 The Gary Cooley Grant Writers: Lisa West, Caren Brown-Smith, Caleb Coy, Jill Ephlin, DJ Warren, Amanda Powell, Niece Hansen, Kassie Rich, Courtney Nelson, Crystal Rollins, Michael Usery, Shade Boulware, Brad Thomason, Maria Christon, Sean Kays, Elmer Avellaneda Campuses Impacted: CHS Subjects Impacted: Career & Technical Coursework for Special Education Grades Impacted: 9th-12th Corsicana ISD believes every student can maximize her/her potential. In order to raise expectations for students with disabilities, our Career and Technical and Special Education teachers and administrators have completed a focused study of the CTE TEKS in order to add daily, meaningful work habits to the curriculum for those who have moderate to severe disabilities. Our belief is that the students can achieve innumerable enrichment experiences via planning, production, packaging, marketing and selling of simple, homemade crafts. Growing Up With Life Cycles Amount: $3,665.00 James H. Edgar Grant Writer: Laura Conrad Campuses Impacted: All Elementary Subjects Impacted: Science Grades Impacted: K-6th Organisms change over time - this is a major theme of science starting in kindergarten and going all the way through high school biology. We want to "plant the seeds" of this idea early so that our students will understand this concept as they move through elementary school. The goal of this project is for every K-5 science classroom in Corsicana ISD to have all the materials they would need to observe life cycles in a hands-on experiment during their science time. Some grade levels will observe tadpoles, some will observe butterflies, and others will observe other insects or plants. The POWER...To Do More! Amount: $700.00 and a generator The Yvette Eagle Grant Writers: Bre Osbourn, Mike Belew, Jeff Osbourn, Ricky Hinton Campuses Impacted: CMS & CHS Subjects Impacted: Band, Jazz Band, Guard, Percussion Studio Grades Impacted: 7th-12th Not only can our band program bring art and education to the community through the sounds of winds and percussion but it can reach the public through voice, electronics, piano and poetry as well. Through the use of a small rechargeable portable generator we will be able to project digital sounds and voices throughout our performances; quotes from literature, statistics for complex subject matter and dedications of importance. We will be able to include our CISD piano playing students into our instrumental works via amplified keyboards and we will have more mobility to perform a variety of performance styles in a wider range of locations via access to the electricity provided by a generator system. A reliable power system equals flexibility in styles of performance repertoire and accessibility. Using a battery-operated system also eliminates the risk of damage to the grounds of a performance facility as there is no use for fuel or heat with a battery-operated unit. Movement in Melody is a Success! Let's Keep it Going! Amount: $3,300.00 Writers: Bre Osbourn, Campuses Impacted: CHS Subjects Impacted: Band/Winter Guard Grades Impacted: 9th-12th CISD was able to start a Winter Color Guard program two years ago through the generosity of a CEF grant. Through that program we have been able to give our very talented guard members are more personal genre of competition and open more doors to college scholarships and drum corps memberships via that activity. Our color guard program has grown in size and strength due to the availability and publicity of the winter guard program and we are now one of the most competitive groups in North Texas. A grant in support of this program will help us to maintain our ability to provide this activity to our students and allow us to create productions that will be competitive in our scholastic category. Texas Reads One Book Amount: $4,000.00 Eleanor Thornell English/Language Arts Grant Campuses Impacted: All Elementaries Grades Impacted: 4th Grade CEF decided to continue the annual Texas Reads One Book project indefinitely, allowing all 4th grade students across the district to read the same book at school and home each spring. CHS Engineering Program Amount: $10,000 AT&T Grant Writer: Damon Reed Campuses Impacted:CHS Subjects Impacted: Engineering Grades Impacted: 9th-12th CHS Engineering Program Amount: $10,000 Verizon Grant Writers: Damon Reed, PHOTO OPP - Grant Awarded earlier in spring Writer: Damon Reed Campuses Impacted:CHS Subjects Impacted: Engineering Grades Impacted: 9th-12th Water, Sun, Fish, & Careers Amount: $2,500.00 Oil City Iron Works Grant Writers: Larry Acock, April Collins, Jennifer Cabano, Melissa Anderton, Heath Terry, and Keith Jones Campuses Impacted: Corsicana Middle School Subjects Impacted: Vocational Agriculture Mechanics, Science, English, Math, Digital Multimedia, Exploring Careers Grades Impacted: Pre-K-8th This grant supports the CMS Ag Mech aquaponics project for 2017-2018. Our Flock Rocks! Amount: $555.00 Citizens National Bank Writers: Jennifer Hill Campuses Impacted: Bowie Subjects Impacted: Science Grades Impacted: Kindergarten Students are involved in the life cycle through a safe, hands-on learning experience. The brooder boxes need to be accessible to the students without any risk or danger of being harmed while using them. Basic skills such as data measurement, collection, and analysis can be used while the children are able to reach in and touch the chicks and participate in their health and growth. These projects help students learn biological concepts and develop a deeper understanding of the life sciences. Examining embryos at different stages of growth, and observing a beating heart are just two examples. Cooking in Kinder Amount: $440.00 Writers: Laura Ackley, Taylor Jones, Kathy Ware, LaDona Jordan, and Jennifer Hill Campuses Impacted: Bowie Subjects Impacted: All Grades Impacted: Kindergarten With “Cooking in Kinder” we hope to offer a path through which every Kindergarten student has the opportunity to practice and learn academic skills in all contents, use new vocabulary, and acquire life skills through cooking in the classroom. Today's Champions, Tomorrow's Leaders (Year 3) Amount: $6,000.00 Matt "Mad Dog" Dawson Grant Writer: Cynthia Johnson Campuses Impacted: Collins Intermediate Subjects Impacted: Leadership Program Grades Impacted: 5th 6th With your continued support we would love to expand the leadership program for the new 5th and 6th grade campus. Having a leadership program in place will be vital in bringing the current 4th and 5th graders from across the district together with a common goal. We will continue our mission statement: Service with pride, Lead with confidence, Inspire to impact lives! We feel this ties in perfectly with the High School's #TCC theme. We believe that helping students learn and grow to be good leaders is a lifelong skill that not only impacts their future, but can impact countless other lives as well. Biltz-Perot Museum Grant Amount: $3,500.00 Dr. Charles & Jane Biltz Grant Campuses Impacted: Collins Intermediate Grades Impacted: 6th The Biltz Perot Musem Grant started during the 2013-2014 school year, sends every 6th grade student from Drane Intermediate to the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. The Biltz’s and CEF have joined together to commit to funding the Biltz Museum grant for a total of 5 years through the 2019-2020 school year.This grant covers transportation, admission and lunch costs. Manipulating Molecules Amount: $2,605.00 Guardian Industries Grant Writer: Wendy Steele Campuses Impacted: Collins Intermediate Subjects Impacted: Science Grades Impacted: 6th Students are asked to comprehend more complex concepts at a much earlier age. At our grade level, students in science are asked to comprehend how the bonds in molecules break and reform (sometimes in a matter of milliseconds) to create new matter in a chemical change. This is a concept that is very difficult for students as they are not able to see the bonds break and reform, only the results of the reaction. Using molecular models, students will be able to start with elements, create molecules, and then combine molecules to see how the chemical reaction actually occurs. Science on the Road Amount: $2,400.00 Citizens National Bank Writers: Christine Covington, Heather Hill, and Carlos Martinez Campuses Impacted: Sam Houston Subjects Impacted: Science Grades Impacted: 4th Science on the Road is an opportunity for students to go in the field (on four separate field trips) and study science concepts in the real world in order to apply them to content learned in a classroom setting. These field experiences will allow students to improve their investigative and reasoning skills while enhancing the content they have learned in the traditional classroom setting. Promoting Emergent Literacy Skills Through Various Interaction with Print Amount: $1,290.00 Eleanor Thornell English/Language Arts Grant Writer: Margarita Mendiola Campuses Impacted: Drane Learning Center Subjects Impacted: Reading Grades Impacted: Pre-K This grant will provide a listening center to expand student’s vocabulary and to promote emergent literacy skills. Children at this age take great pleasure in listening to stories, and we want to encourage this love of reading while creating an effective and enjoyable learning environment. The objective is that by the end of the year each child will demonstrate understanding the meaning of 3,000 to 4,000 words ELL students will comprehend up to 1,000 and students will show positive pre-reading behaviors. MAKING Our Way into the 21st Century Amount: $1,000.00 Joeris General Contractors Grant Writer: Brandi Moore Campuses Impacted: Sam Houston Subjects Impacted: Math, Science, ELA, SLA, Social Studies, Tech Apps, Art Grades Impacted: Pre-K- 4th The library Makerspace Program will be a place of making, producing, solving, creating, collaborating, and thinking. It will provide hands-on, creative ways for students to design, experiment, and invent. The space will inspire students to become participatory learners. Here students will uncover both known and unknown talents, needs, and interests. It will be a place where failure is seen only as a means of learning, and problems can be solved in a variety of ways. The Makerspace Program will support students in all areas of education by teaching them to think critically, think creatively, collaborate with others, and communicate their ideas. The program will transform the library into a true learning commons. Storyboard That: Using Digital Creativity to Show What We Know Amount: $6,435.00 The Margaret Huffman Grant Writer: Brandi Moore Campuses Impacted: All Elementary Subjects Impacted: All subjects Grades Impacted: Pre-K-6th Students will be given opportunities to engage in digital storytelling which promotes critical thinking and decision making skills, builds competency with technology, enhances and supports the writing process, and allows students to share and collaborate with others. The Dynamic Divas Amount: $1,600.00 City National Bank Grant Writer: Brittany Mathis Campuses Impacted: Carroll Subjects Impacted: Health Education, Math, and Reading Grades Impacted: 3rd 4th 5th Young ladies that attend our school represent a rich diversity of experiences and realities. Early adolescence is a particularly important time for girls as they begin to explore and develop their individual identities in the face of the media and society's expectations. It is a time of maturity, growth and change. Evidence has shown that girls are particularly susceptible to challenges related to their physical and mental health, body image and self-esteem. Every girl should believe in herself and realize that she matters. Additionally, she should have her mother's support because there is nothing like a mother's love. Games for Group Counseling Amount: $175.00 Writer: Daphne Garrett Campuses Impacted: Navarro Subjects Impacted: Counseling Grades Impacted: K-4th At Navarro Elementary there are often times that working with students in a small group setting is the most effective way to counsel for certain issues. For example, offering a group that teaches students how to make friends, or helping a group of students whose parents are divorced, or incarcerated. When the students feel they are not the only student at our campus dealing with certain feelings or problems, they feel a sense of connection and build relationships. They also become more aware of the exact feelings they are experiencing. This can help them work through difficult life situations, which in turn helps them focus more on learning at school. My goal is to incorporate fun ways to connect these students next year, and in years to come, by offering more small groups that address actual problems students face at our school. Franklin My Dear, I Can Spell That! Amount: $3,600.00 Eleanor Thornell English/Language Arts Grant Writers: Sheri Leamon, Donna Hill, Phyllis Reagan, and Gay Lyn Hendrik Campuses Impacted: All Elementary (Pre-K-6th) Subjects Impacted: All core subjects Grades Impacted: 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th We wish to purchase 30 electronic spellers (per elementary campus) to assist our students who have print disabilities (such as dyslexia, or SPED students who have a learning disability in writing) with the writing process. These spellers will allow our students to spell whatever word they choose and will enable them to spell more confidently. The electronic spellers can be used in the classroom and on state assessments if the student has an accommodation for an electronic speller. Sam Houston Principal's Grant Amount: $500.00 Funded through Kohl's Associates in Action Program CISD District-Wide Initiative Grant - $10,000 |
Fall 2016 Mini-GrantsOn Friday, Oct. 28, the Corsicana Education Foundation awarded $18,580 through 11 Fall Innovative Teaching Grants to Corsicana ISD students and teachers.
We'll Be Together Whatever the Weather
$1,645.00 Gloria McLuckie, Azure McLuckie, Brittany Lassiter, Chris Wheelock District-wide Sponsored by First Financial Group of America 9th-12th Grade Theatre Department and All Fine Arts Technology continues to improve and bring large spectacle to the performing arts. We have school performances, Navarro Council of the Arts performances, and community performances that will benefit from the equipment we would like to purchase. This grant includes a Fog Machine, a Hazer Machine, and a Snow Machine. The equipment will come with all that it needs to perform their respective duties. Our students will have the opportunity to be exposed to more in the theatre to encourage them to be a part of the Fine Arts throughout their lives. Students will actually be able to ,make it snow, rain, be foggy, and cool special effects with lights and the hazer. STEM into Ingenuity $985.65 Laura Ackley, Jennifer Hill, Taylor Jones, LaDona Jordan, Kathy Ware Bowie Elementary Partially funded by Linebarger, Goggan, Blair & Sampson, LLP Kindergarten Science, Math, Technology With the grant, "STEM into Ingenuity," our students will engage in interdisciplinary activities that promote higher-order thinking and problem solving skills using real-world scenarios. STEM products are designed to help students develop reasoning, collaborating, investigating, and creating skills from a young age with the hopes of training children to be leaders in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics in the 21st century. "See Me" - Creating Autism Awareness Through the Grace of Music and Beauty of Silk $1,000.00 Bre Osbourn Corsicana High School 9th-12th Band/Winter Guard We have an award-winning winter guard program in CISD. We would like to continue our highly-regarded success in competition this year by creating a show about autism awareness through musical and visual interpretation. Our students will use aspects of music, dance, color guard and visual modeling to illustrate the different aspects of dealing with and understanding autism. Winter Guard is not a standard budgeted program in CISD. We will be able to continue our great successes in this program through the help of grants, fundraising and sponsorship. Can You Hear Me Now? $2,500.00 Bre Osbourn Jeff Osbourn, Mike Belew, Ricky Hinton Drane, Collins Middle School and Corsicana High School Band Our band program is using an old and out of date sound system to amplify our ensembles. If we are able to obtain a new speaker and sound system we will be able to amplify our musicians, speakers and ensembles more effectively and will thus have a much wider range of performance types available to us at all levels. This can be used for marching band, jazz, concert ensemble, guard and various other types of musical endeavors. Kids Discovery Garden $2,000.00 Chris Havener, Catherine LaRose , Donna Myers, Jennifer Denis Carroll Elementary Pre-K through 5th Math, Science, Writing Kids Discovery Garden is intended to be an outdoor learning experience for students from Pre K to 5th grade. This hands-on approach will have the children actively engaged with the growing process of plants, insects and other living organisms that thrive within a garden community. The garden area will give them not only hands- on experience, but an up close encounter with nature while applying numerous math and science TEKS to multi-grade levels. Building Knowledge with Novels $2,000.00 Jennifer Ragland & Sara Lewis Navarro Elementary Kindergarten through 5th grade English Language Arts and Reading "Building Knowledge with Novels" will allow students the opportunity to engage in Reading and Writing activities. The students will participate in character studies, read alouds, critical writing, and extension projects. These novels will help students gain background knowledge through vocabulary and story elements. Each grade will study appropriate chapter books for their reading level. Storyboard That: Using Digital Creativity to Show What We Know $1,950.00 Brandi Moore & Amy Carr Sam Houston & Carroll Elementary Pre-Kindergarten through 5th grade All Subjects Students will be given opportunities to engage in digital storytelling which promotes critical thinking and decision making skills, builds competency with technology, enhances and supports the writing process, and allows students to share and collaborate with others. Texas Rangers Weather Day with CBS 11/ TXA 21 Meteorologists $2,000.00 Benjamin Perez, Michelle McNutt, Sherry Owen Sam Houston Elementary 3rd Science Each year, The Texas Ranger's organization hosts a Weather Day for elementary students. This event includes information about severe weather, interactive lessons on the solar system, thunderstorms and hail, experiments to teach students about cloud formation, air pressure and fronts, and weather related demonstrations. This opportunity will allow our students to have field experiences over relevant science content, which is imperative to ours students’ learning. As it builds background knowledge and connects content to experience, students will be able to think about science on a higher-level. DEFY: Dynamic Empowerment for Youth $2,500 Danzell Lee, Michael Stewart, Aric Bonner Corsicana High School 9th-12th Student achievement in all areas; College and career success; Graduation rate DEFY is a motivational program through which adult mentors work with high school students to provide perspective, guidance, and motivation to positively impact their character, college, and career development and, ultimately, decisions that will affect their success in life. The program is led by Dr. Ron Kelly. He is joined by Corsicana community leaders, which include business owners as well as district counselors and volunteers. This program has been held twice at Corsicana High School with highly positive responses. In the spring of 2016 the first session was held with 35 male students. The reactions were so positive that this fall an additional group of male students were added with the group from last year joining them in the afternoon. The female group was added this school year as well. Fannin Principal's Grant $500.00 Funded through Kohl's Associates in Action Program Sam Houston Principal's Grant $1,500.00 Funded through Kohl's Associates in Action Program |