Greencastle-Antrim Education Foundation presents $19K-plus in educational impact grants

The Greencastle-Antrim Education Foundation presented nearly $20,000 in educational impact grants to teachers in the G-A School District on Feb. 2.

The district's teachers gathered in the high school auditorium as checks totaling $19,613.65 were distributed by GAEF board members.

"As we go through this presentation program. you'll hear how these grants will fund innovative and exciting opportunities in the classroom, positively impacting our students, as our teachers here at the Greencastle-Antrim School District continue to raise the bar of excellence in providing our students with a world class education," said Vernon McCauley, president of GAEF.

Established in 1997, GAEF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to impact and enhance Greencastle-Antrim students’ educational experience through academics, arts and athletics.

With the Feb. 2 presentation, GAEF has awarded just over $40,000 in educational impact grants over the last four years, according to McCauley, who cited the generosity of community donors and the steadfast support of the Shockey Family Foundation.

Kerri Barnes, chair of GAEF's Educational Impact Committee and director of Tayamentasachta, the school district's environmental center, talked about how refreshing it is to work with non-educators who are so supportive of education.

Another impact of GAEF: State-of-the-art building opens for Greencastle-Antrim students & community at Kaley Field

Beyond the classroom: Greencastle-Antrim social studies students are preserving community history

The GAEF grants

• Elizabeth Wilson, science, seventh grade, $1,581: Transportation/driver cost for Trout in the Classroom release in May
• Christine Palmer, algebra, seventh grade, $1,580: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics - group access for 79 district math teachers to illuminations, problems and student explorations in mathematics
• Leah Shaw and Sarah Diller, middle school reading initiative, $3,500: Purchase of 146 books or book series to help launch the independent reading initiative at GAMS
• Meghan Coker, third-grade team, $990: Purchase of 10 digital subscriptions of Breakout EDU that will provide students access to curriculum games in problem solving and critical thinking.
• Nicole Estep, kindergarten team, $499.99: Purchase Heggerty Phonemic Awareness Daily Lesson Digital Videos for students to view and supplement the Heggerty training the teachers received to help teach the foundations of reading.
• Holly Shearer, art third to fifth grade, $1,633.44: Purchase 30 logitech crayons and power station for charging for art students to create digital art on iPads
• Susan Hirneisen third-grade team, $2,000: Each of the 10 teachers would like $200 to spend on books to expand the classroom library of each third-grade classroom
• Meagan Brockway and James Thomas, Rho Kappa social studies scholars, $930.13: Items needs to create traveling exhibits of Blue Devil artifacts and Tayamentasachta artifacts
• Meagan Brockway and James Thomas, Rho Kappa social studies scholars, $587.91: Purchase items to create a mobile studio for their StoryCorps: Greencastle Edition which will consist of interviews of local veterans and their families.
• Alex Miller, ninth- to 12th-grade art, $2,805.45: Purchase of two pottery wheels and other materials to increase art students’ experience of the pottery wheel throwing process.
• Christine Palmer, kindergarten through eighth grade, $2,112.05: Purchase Math Matters: Building Capacity for Math Educators helping to provide professional development to teachers and increasing math literacy and proficiency of students
• Ryan Kaiser, Emily Trace and Amy Crider, kindergarten through second grade, $1,312.84: For professional development to cover the cost of attending the Pete & C Technology Conference, the largest tech conference held in Pennsylvania. As the GASD integrates IPads and other technology into the classroom, attending this conference will afford us the opportunity to learn more about new technology, along with innovative ways to utilize this information in the classroom

Shawn Hardy is a reporter with Gannett's Franklin County newspapers in south-central Pennsylvania — the Echo Pilot in Greencastle, The Record Herald in Waynesboro and the Public Opinion in Chambersburg. She has more than 35 years of journalism experience. Reach her at shardy@gannett.com