Spring Branch Education Foundation Grants $63,652 for District Students

At its May 30 Board meeting, Spring Branch EducationFoundation (SBEF) directors approved $63,652 in grants that will fund diverse education-enhancing projects throughout Spring Branch Independent School District.

The grants are designated for district-wide projects and SBISD campuses. Twice each year, the Foundation calls for grant applications, up to $5,000 each, from any of its 47 school campuses or district departments. Faculty members and volunteers are encouraged to apply.

"Generous community members support the Foundation’s fundraisers and make donations to provide funds for these grants,” said Donnie Roseman, a member of the SBEF Board of Directors and chair of the Program and Assessment Committee. “All applications are carefully evaluated for the affect they will have for students. It’s always gratifying to learn about the creative approach our teachers take to engaging students.”

Grants that will benefit students on a district-wide basis include:

• Altharetta Yeargin Art Museum – The grant will help fund Road Shows that take the museum to first-grade classrooms and Study Trips for second graders who travel to the museum. Both programs are closely coordinated with grade-level curriculum.
• Athletic Department – SBISD Athletics will partner with Cypress ECG to provide voluntary EKGs for students in grades 6 through 12 who participate in athletics, band, drill team, cheerleading and ROTC. This valuable screen is needed only once throughout middle and high school.      
• J. Landon Short Mini-Grants for Educators – Ten grants, up to $500 each, will be awarded to SBISD educators who wish to go beyond standard curricula activities and materials to enrich the learning environment. This program fosters new best practices for teaching and learning.
• Love and Logic Initiative – All SBISD students benefit from this program that enhances social and emotional support in classrooms.
• SpringBoard Mentor Program – More than 600 mentors spend an hour each week with students on 31 SBISD campuses. This relationship helps students build self-confidence, develop communication and interpersonal skills, discover their passions and find meaningful connections between school and the future.

Grants for individual campuses include:

• The Bear Blvd. School – A Kids Count manipulative program will make pre-kindergartners math ready as they learn number concepts, shapes and patterns.
• Edgewood Elementary School – Now!Boards will make interactive technology available to kindergarten classrooms, providing a foundation of technology skills that students will use throughout elementary school.
• Landrum Middle School – Students will create Convection Connection, a multimedia literacy project, that will include a screenplay and storyboard and culminate in a student-produced video, reinforcing the scientific concept of convection.
• The Lion Lane School – Additional ActivBoards will make this technology available in all classrooms and launch pre-kindergartners on the technology learning path they can expect in elementary school.
• Northbrook High School – Students will participate in DALE (Dynamic Achievers Legitimizing Excellence), a leadership conference that prepares students for college and careers.
• Northbrook Middle School -- Selected rising 8^th-graders will be provided transportation to a six-weeks University of Houston Downtown Houston Prep enrichment program for high-achievers.
• The Panda Path School – Pre-kindergarten teachers will enjoy staff development that will enhance math instruction and engagement.
• Sherwood Elementary School – Spanish texts, in a variety of genres, will help students learn to read Spanish as a first or second language.
• Spring Branch Middle School – Life in Texas in the 1800s will come alive for 7^th-graders as they participate in The Texian Time machine, sponsored by the Fort Bend Museum Association.
• Spring Forest Middle School – The SFMS Orchestra will receive new violins of all sizes for classroom and home use.

“We encourage PTAs, principals, and teachers to apply for these grants,” said Cece Thompson, SBEF executive director. “We will call for fall 2013 grant applications in September, and the recipients will be announced in December. Our PTA volunteers and faculty are very creative, so we always receive applications for creative projects.”

Additional grants were awarded as the result of a successful Running for the Arts event on May 4. SBISD’s Fine Arts department received $38,500 for ArtsPartner field trips to the city’s premier performing and visual arts venues. The district’s Health Fitness department received $12,000, and the Altharetta Yeargin Art Museum received $3,986.

Community members who wish to support a specific program at a designated campus can make a tax-deductible donation to the Foundation and earmark it for it for that school. Call 713-251-2381 or email sbef@springbranchisd.com for more information.

Founded in 1993, SBEF’s mission is to enhance the quality of education for every student in SBISD. The Foundation provides donors with a vehicle for making voluntary, tax-deductible gifts to the district. The Foundation has raised more than $7.5 million and received the Houston Business Promise Award from the Greater Houston Partnership.