District 39 Educational Foundation Announces Spring 2014 Grants

The District 39 Educational Foundation recently announced its Spring 2014 Gripp Grants, and will be supporting four new programs in Wilmette schools. During the 2013-2014 school year, the foundation awarded more than $30,000 in grants.

Online Multimedia Book Collection (Romona): The Romona School Library Media Center was awarded a grant to acquire an online multimedia book collection, based on a submission from Alicia Wiechert, librarian, Bev Taylor, differentiation specialist, Kate Hood, reading specialist, and Sandie Capsuto, ELL teacher. This collection will include eBooks, interactive eBooks, and digital audiobooks, and will be available for all Romona students to access; with emphasis on assisting emergent readers, students who struggle with reading, English Language Learners, and reluctant readers. This new collection will bring the current fiction audio collection up-to-date and offer more opportunities for usage. The multimedia books are compatible with all forms of technology, as well as the Romona Library Media Center's online catalog. 

Buddy Bench (Highcrest Middle School): This grant was awarded to the students of Margaret Belconis' 5th grade class. After learning about an 8 year-old Pennsylvania boy who created a buddy bench at his school as a safe place for kids at recess who might feel lonely or left out, the Highcrest students wanted to introduce two buddy benches to their playground. The buddy bench is an opportunity to connect the playground environment to the school’s Second Step curriculum and encourage middle schoolers to show kind behaviors and empathy towards their peers. 

French Fairy Tales (Highcrest Middle School): This grant was awarded to Highcrest French Teacher, Katie Fox. The 5th and 6th grade French classes will utilize familiar fairy tales to enhance the foreign language reading experience for students, and help them to develop vocabulary, story meaning, and flow. These stories will aid students’ confidence, ability to read aloud, and overall reading comprehension. These new books will help create a more authentic French language experience at HMS. 

Tracy Kearney, foundation Gripp Grant chair, notes that themes emerged among the grants this cycle. “The programming applied for was exciting this round, with diverse applications but interestingly common objectives. We loved being able to provide funds for a Buddy Bench at HMS to support our students’ desire to ‘choose kind’ and at the same time provide a grant for the Gaga Ball arena at Romona giving an alternative play option for students of all abilities. While different and unique mediums, both have very similar goals – inclusion. We saw this similarly in the other two grants this spring, as both promote literacy by broadening the availability and scope of reading materials.” 

The District 39 Educational Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to investing in our children’s future. Since 1993, the Foundation has provided over $1 million in funds for educational programs, experiences, and technologies that expand, enrich, and complement the schools’ curricula. For more information on the District 39 Educational Foundation or the Gripp Grant program, contact 847-853-3939, email d39found@wilmette39.org, or visit www.d39foundation.org.