2012-13 Grants

How Much Money Has Been Awarded?
Over the last fifthteen years MEF has awarded over $161,000 in grants. This year nearly $24,000 in grant requests was received. Download the 12/13 Grant Press Release.

This Year’s Grants:
Over $14,900 will be distributed to the following grant recipients:

Jaworek Elementary School:

• Claire Nicholson- $399.00 for “Enhancing Communication with Portuguese Speaking Students and Families”

This project will provide the opportunity for Jaworek Elementary School personnel to learn Brazilian Portuguese and therefore communicate more effectively with many of their students and families. It involves the use of the Rosetta Stone program of language acquisition. The CDs will be utilized both individually and in small groups.

• Audrey Moore - $1,280.00 for “Motivating Readers and Learners Through iPads”

Jaworek School will have three iPads to use with English Language Learners to excite them about reading and learning. Using this technology will enhance their acquisition of the English language and help them access the newly developed curriculum by being able to listen to or read books from the unit. By using iPads and loading them with the audiobooks and ibooks of anchor texts, ELL students will be able to read, reread, listen, or relisten to enjoy reading, have greater access to the curriculum, and to improve their English and technology skills.

• Donna Cunningham - $800.00 for “Storytelling, Writing, and Publishing with Legos”

Second grade teachers at Jaworek will use the Lego Education Story Starter Getting Started Pack with all of their second graders. The product integrates Lego bricks and software to guide students with reading, writing, speaking, listening, and problem-solving skills. This is a hands-on and motivating approach for introducing the Language Arts Common Core standards while building teamwork and communication skills. Story Starter teaches students to use Lego bricks to build a well-composed story. The Story Visualizer Software enables the students to record their stories in a visual and creative way. The research based product helps students become engaged and energized about language arts.

Kane Elementary School:

• Christie Huther- $1,846.90 for “Building a Bookroom of Nonfiction”

With the adoption of the new Common Core standards, schools throughout Massachusetts are working to incorporate more nonfiction reading instruction and practice into their classrooms. Students need frequent practice reading nonfiction texts at their instructional level. This set of leveled nonfiction texts and teacher resources represents a range of reading levels from late 2 nd grade through late 4 th grade as well as teachers’ guides, assessments, and vocabulary cards. The sets will become part of the Kane Elementary School bookroom for teachers to access nonfiction texts at their students’ instructional reading level.

Richer Elementary School:

• Susan Rosenthal- $800.00 for “Adaptive Keyboard and Software”

Due to physical, cognitive, or vision delays many students with special needs cannot access a computer by using a traditional keyboard. The Intellikeys keyboard and software can change that. This adapted keyboard utilizes overlays providing alternative keyboard layouts and switch interfaces that will enable students to have this ability.

Whitcomb School:

• Cathy Rosenstock- $753.35 for “Reading and Sharing Through Multiple Formats”

This grant will fund the purchase of 3 Nook e-readers, accessories, and e-books. The availability in the Middle School library of e-readers for the purpose of reading/listening to books will expose students to technology formats, processes, and resources they may not be familiar with, including the digital book resources available free through the public library. The technology will complement a reading incentive project in which students write book reviews to be shared online.

Recipient of the Carvalho/Roth Grant to promote literacy:

• Katie Lubkert-$843.57 for “Global Understanding Through Literacy”

This grant will fund the purchase of social studies content books. To obtain a greater global understanding of the world, students will investigate the cultures, economies, demographics, and politics of the continents and regions through literary works. Students will not only gain a deeper sense of global cultures, but will be exposed to more reading and writing in a cross-curricula setting.

Whitcomb and Marlborough High School:

• Bill Rigney - $2296.00 for “STEM Early College High School Document Cameras”

Four document cameras will provide the seventh and tenth grade STEM ECHS teachers the opportunity to further enhance their teaching and afford their students the opportunity to observe specific components of a lesson as well as allow students to showcase and explain their work in their classes.

Marlborough High School:

• Kristin Arbeene- $450.00 for “Much Ado About an iPad”

Having an Apple iPad for the use of all High School English teachers will enhance the teaching of literary works, specifically those by William Shakespeare through the Shakespeare in Bits applications. These apps allow the study of Shakespearean works to be done side by side through written text and visual media, thus making Shakespeare more accessible for all learners. Additionally, the use of other apps, such as SimpleMind, can be used as effective modeling tools for the writing process.

• Chris Henry - $1,486.00 for “Elmo’s World”

The purchase of two Elmo document cameras will support teaching for English instruction in writing across the 9-12 grades, at all levels including College Prep, Honors, AP, ELL, and special education students. The Elmo document cameras will enable teachers and students to integrate technology with everyday learning and allow students to engage in writing instruction in a visual way.

• Ken Hanson - $1,953.28 for “Real World Design Competition Computer Purchase”

The Real World Design Competition is a national engineering competition. In our first year (2012-2011), Marlborough High School won the State portion of the challenge, allowing us to compete at the National Challenge in Washington DC. Unable to fully complete the advanced drafting requirements due to inadequate computer power, our team was not able to win any of the awards. In 2011-12 we won the State Championship again, but fell short in the National Challenge for the same reasons. Our goal this year is to win the National event, however a more powerful computer is necessary to complete the Challenge requirements. If MHS were to win the National event, the school would be awarded significant amounts ($1,000,000.00) of free software, a trip to meet the President of the United States, and numerous public appearances.

Recipient of the FishEye Software Grant to promote technology:

• Heather Kohn - $893.50 for “Calculator Based Rangers”

Ten calculator based rangers will provide ninth and tenth grade STEM ECHS students the opportunity to collect and analyze real-world motion data while connected to a TI graphing calculator. This kinesthetic approach to exploring motion and graphing linear functions promotes student engagement.

• Christine Randall - $1104.00 for “eToday, eTomorrow, eToStay…eBooks”

Students who read for pleasure are more successful in an academic setting. This grant is for funds to start an eBook collection at Marlborough High School. Purchasing e-readers and the licenses for current, popular young adult fiction will promote reading for pleasure allowing students to use personal electronic devices for reading.

The Foundation extends its thanks to the other applicants for grants. The Foundation also wishes to thank the administration of the Marlborough Public Schools for their continuing support.

For further information, please contact:

President Valerie Cowan 508-481-0008 or vlcowan@comcast.net

Vice President Michael Brossi 508-460-1755 or michael@brossters.org

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