The Charlotte Public Schools Education Foundation has been building momentum over the course of the last few years as its fund-raising efforts have increased with community awareness. As a byproduct, the Foundation has been able to contribute more towards enhancing the educational opportunities for Charlotte students.

This is most evident in the Foundation’s latest announcement of classroom mini-grant recipients. Nine mini-grants in total, the most in the Foundation’s short history, were awarded to teachers representing every school in the district.

“We are so thankful that our community continues to support the Charlotte Public Schools Education Foundation,” said CPSEF president, Brian Lautzenheiser. “With that support we were able to award nine mini grants this year. We also had a record turnout for applications turned in. The message is getting out that we want to help the teachers and be relied on as a resource.”

Carolyn Maier, who serves on the Foundation’s grant committee, said the quality of the applications was impressive.

“Proposals that were funded included the areas of reading, language arts, science, English, music and differentiated learning,” Maier said. “Our mission to enhance the educational experiences of students in the Charlotte Public Schools is made possible by the continuing community support of our fundraising efforts such as the golf outing and Oktoberfest/Art Auction and the generous donation from the James and Ann Garvey Living Trust.”

Grant recipients include:

  • Amy Byam, teacher at Charlotte Upper Elementary School for a Differentiated Learning and Movement Project, which will improve student learning through better participation in instruction by improving focus, stamina and engagement.
  • Katy Caudell, teacher at Washington Elementary School for sensory equipment, which will be used to help students on the autism spectrum focus on instruction and tasks.
  • Kelly Hazel, teacher at Parkview Elementary School for Literact Stations, which provide creative ways for students and practice and improve language arts skills.
  • Richard Lee, teacher and Matt Maitland, principal at Charlotte Upper Elementary School to support students participating in VEX-IQ Robotics Competition Team.
  • Deanna Milligan, music teacher at Washington and Parkview Elementary schools to add an F Contrabass Bar to the collection of musical instruments.
  • Kevin Robinson, teacher at Charlotte High School for Explore Learning Gizmos, which is a program students will use with their iPads to study topics aligned with Next Generation Science Standards.
  • Sarah Rolfs, teacher at Charlotte High School for Screencast Technology, which will improve grading and conferencing with students regarding their writing.
  • Karen Scheurer and Kristy Hoover, teachers at Parkview Elementary School for RAZ-Kids, which is an online site where students will practice reading ebooks.
  • Ken Wright, science teacher at Parkview and Washington Elementary schools for a classroom digital microscope, which will help students engage in hands-on activities.

For more information, find Charlotte Public Schools Education Foundation on Facebook.