Foundation grants awarded at Muskogee Public Schools
May 6—Teachers gasped, shrieked, even shed a few tears Wednesday morning when Education Foundation of Muskogee representatives presented them with their 2021 grants.
"I'm excited, I'm smiling real big," Muskogee High School science teacher Ja'Corie Maxwell said from behind his face mask.
Education Foundation President Karra Wardour said the foundation awarded 18 grants totaling $23,863.94. Fifteen teachers at seven schools received grants.
Wardour said grants "allow teachers to do extra activities with their students in the classroom or the building, outside of the curriculum."
Maxwell said he plans to use his grant to buy poetry books for the college-career exploration course he teaches at MHS. He said he seeks to expose students to different types of literature in the class. The poetry book purchase was inspired by Amanda Gorman's poem "The Hill We Climb," which the poet recited at this year's presidential inauguration, Maxwell said.
Janet Lopez, who teaches pre-engineering and Project Lead the Way at MHS, nearly wept when surprised with her grant for Solder This!
"Soldering is one of those really cool foundational things in electronics and electrical engineering, jewelry or anything," Lopez said. "I do a project in a girls-only engineering camp that is soldering. Girls love it, but it's very expensive to get a kit, so I thought if I could get some really good soldering irons, I could do this forever and ever and ever."
Soldering joins two items by melting a filler metal into the joint. Soldering irons will offer "that wow factor" for the camp, she said.
"Actually, that's one of the things I'm going to incorporate into the robotics team is a day of soldering," Lopez said.
Physical education teacher Damon Beckers' students at the Sixth Grade Academy halted their tug-of-war to cheer when he received his grant. He said the class has a cup stacking game to help develop fine motor skills.
"It resets their brain energy-wise by using their left hand and their right hand," he said. "What we ordered were some timers so we could actually have some tournaments and get into the competitive side of it."
Creek Elementary special education teacher Kim Witherspoon said she'll use her grant to place a Sensory Path through the school halls.
"There will be things they can do, like hopping from one letter to the next," Witherspoon said. "There will also be academic things included, like ABCs, numbers. It's going to around the hallways in our schools. It's multi-functional."
She said she plans to get a "nature path" featuring log pictures where students do certain movements "where their senses can be engaged."
Wardour said a foundation committee rates and ranks teacher grant requests. Grants are based on the amount of money available.
She said the foundation was able to raise enough money for grants, even after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the annual trivia night fundraising gala. She said the foundation raised money in part by sending appeals to people who had attended or sponsored tables at past fundraisers. Wardour said the foundation usually gives out $25,000 to $35,000 in grants each year.
