FORNEY, Texas — The Forney Independent School District (ISD) Educational Leadership Foundation granted more than $67,000 to 37 Forney ISD teachers — the largest grant awarded to teachers since the teacher grant program began in 2007.
FORNEY, Texas — The Forney Independent School District (ISD) Educational Leadership Foundation granted more than $67,000 to 37 Forney ISD teachers — the largest grant awarded to teachers since the teacher grant program began in 2007.
More than 60 grants were submitted this year for the foundation’s consideration and, on October 28 and 29, 2014, the foundation visited every campus in the district to award 37 grants for a total of $67,891.62.
Since the teacher grant program’s inception, more than $317,000 in grants have been awarded to teachers. “Those grants have been used to help district personnel enhance the education process in their classrooms, on their campuses, and across the district,” according to Forney ISD.
The grants went to purchase, among other things, instruments for students at several campuses, educational programs, education-based projects, educational software, science equipment, digital cameras, and one classroom was awarded Samsung Galaxy Tablets for use in the classroom.
A Health Science Technology class was awarded a grant for a life-like adult autopsy mannequin.
“We were extremely impressed with the quality of grants that were submitted to the foundation for consideration this year,” said Lisa Taylor, a member of the foundation’s Board of Directors and the 2014 Teacher Grant Committee Chairperson.
“One of the things that we recognized right away was that the teachers in Forney ISD are well versed in modern technology and how technology can help engage students and enhance educational programs,” she said.
In addition to the grants, the foundation was established to provide every Forney ISD graduating senior with a $500 scholarship towards contenting education. Since the foundation was formed in 2003, more than 4,000 scholarships have been awarded to Forney ISD graduates totaling more than $2 million.
“The goal for the foundation from the very beginning was to provide every graduating student in Forney ISD with financial assistance so that they could continue their education beyond high school,” said Keith Bell, the current president of the foundation and one of the founding members.
“We knew that not every graduate would go on to attend college so we wanted to be able to provide financial aid to a student that might want to learn a trade or become a certified technician in a specific field. A student that wants to become a pharmaceutical technician, an electrical engineer or maybe an auto mechanic isn’t always able to get financial support to complete the certification program,” said Bell. “We wanted to provide those students with the opportunity to pursue their dream, wherever that dream might take them.”
For a complete list of teacher grants, visit the Forney ISD website, here.
