The Consortium awarded 17 grants valued at $29,902 in the current cycle, bringing the total for all grants to $1.34 million since 1987 when the Great Idea Grants program began. Funding for the grants comes from The Grable Foundation; The Dominion Foundation, whose support is aimed at science, math and environmental projects; businesses; community organizations and Change for Children, a program the Consortium launched for teachers to support classroom innovations. For this grant round, Dominion’s funding went toward a science and environmental project in the Steel Valley School District. (See details below)

“The Great Idea Grants are intended to support creative approaches to teaching,” said Program Coordinator Patti Hoke. “These small grants can have an enormous impact in making routine textbook instruction come alive. The kinds of projects we support make learning meaningful and engaging for students and often teach lessons and skills beyond the curriculum to reinforce classroom studies.”

Among the recipients, grants and projects approved were:

Belle Vernon Area School District
Rostraver Elementary School
Jody Grove, Jennifer Godzak, Marsha Ferrara

Grant Title:                Don’t Stop Learning!
Awarded:                   $4,080.61       
Will Benefit:              600 Elementary Students

To promote continued learning using review packets that students receive at the end of the year for completion during the summer, followed by a mailing six weeks later containing flash cards, a book, a spelling list and journal. Teachers will follow-up by phone, review the summer work as school reconvenes in the fall and host “meet-and-greet” sessions for their classes as the new school year begins.                

Brownsville Area School District
Brownsville Area Middle School
Patricia Knisley, Mary Seelye, Martha Davis, David Higinbotham, Frank Morgan

Grant Title:                Medieval Times in 2009
Awarded:                   $556.82
Will Benefit:               150 Sixth Graders

To teach math, art and physical education concepts through literature; using the theme of medieval times; students will read stories and solve riddles written into them using math, create stained glass windows and other art projects, and compete in traditional medieval games.  The program will stimulate higher-level thinking skills, requiring students to ask questions, predict, infer, visualize, make connections and summarize in each discipline.

Brownsville Area School District
Cardale Elementary School
Brandee Chrobak, Andrea Roebuck, Natalie Zuchelkowski, Suzanne Morris

Grant Title:                This is a Bully Free Zone!
Awarded:                   $1,739.55
Will Benefit:               280 Students, grades K-5

To combat school bullying and create a safe and healthy learning environment for all students using teacher engagement, presentations, books, videos, character education in Social Studies and Language Arts classes; students will read stories, view DVDs and write in journals as they learn how to make their school a bully-free zone.

Central Westmoreland CTC
James Broker, Colleen Conko, Al Simmons

Grant Title:                My Robotics – The “Boe Bot”
Awarded:                   $2,377.50                               
Will Benefit:               40-100 Students, Gr. 9-12   

To introduce robotics to electronics students who will build a task-oriented robot to perform various activities while learning about the components, wiring, and programming.  Physics and math concepts will be used as well as many technical skills.  By building and using robots, students will gain a foundation in technology, programming, and engineering career paths. 

Charleroi Area School District
Charleroi Area Elementary Center
Cathy Hayden, Jennifer Ewedosh, Linda Filby, Meghan Konsugar, Natalie Destefano, Jamie Pomponio

Grant Title:                Learning and Responding to xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxthe World Around Us
Awarded:                   $2,546.88       
Will Benefit:               130 Elementary Students

To use lunchtime book discussions to help expand students’ learning about the world, including geography, weather, political units, famous heroes and leaders. Discussions will encourage further research and student projects, such as dioramas, models, interviews and letters that will be presented and shared. Classroom teachers, other district educators, family members, and community experts will participate.

East Allegheny School District
Green Valley Primary School
Tracy Yusko, Denise Snyder

Grant Title:                Green Valley Citizens Support vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvOur Seniors          
Awarded:                   $980.00         
Will Benefit:               44 Second Graders

To help students compile a cookbook as a service project.  Students will design and color the covers for the cookbooks, collect favorite recipes and write the steps to make them.  Copies of the book will be sold to raise funds for students to give small gifts to senior citizen pen palsduring a visit to a nearby assisted-living facility. While working on their project, students will read stories that reinforce the theme of helping others.

Elizabeth Forward School District
Elizabeth and William Penn Elementary Schools
Lynann Falosk, Danielle Traeger, Bryan Wieclaw

Grant Title:                Earning Our Keep – A Financial vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvExperience    
Awarded:                   $928.77
Will Benefit:               75 Fifth Graders

To help students learn the basics of finance as each classroom transforms itself into a miniature society.  Using an existing motivational tool named for the school’s mascot—Warrior Bucks—students will learn personal finances; they’ll apply for classroom jobs, keep check registers, pay taxes and earn rebates as they learn principles of earning, saving, spending and being responsible for their own actions.

Forbes Road Career and Technology Center
Wendy Moore, Paula MacArthur

Grant Title:                History Day
Awarded:                   $210.00                     
Will Benefit:               15 directly, whole school vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvindirectly

To initiate a yearlong project in which students research their current areas of study—from dental technology to HVAC—as they relate to the theme, Innovations in History.  Students will create displays to exhibit their findings, compete in a district judging and vie for entry in competition at the Senator John Heinz History Center.  Their work will combine history, English, and technical learning.

Forbes Road Career and Technology Center
Wendy Moore, Dee Dee Ciccarelli, Janel Peretta, Diana Baldridge

Grant Title:                Soft Skills
Awarded:                   $1,800.00       
Will Benefit:               800 Students, Grades 10-12

To improve students’ time management skills and ultimately their employability by using specially designed day-planners to help them organize and prioritize assignments and build discipline. Students will employ these skills in every class throughout the year.

Ringgold School District
Donora Elementary School
Rachel Lint, Lacey Malik

Grant Title:                PE Performers
Awarded:                   $1,999.80                   
Will Benefit:               60 Students, Grades 1-5                 
To help a team of students from each grade level understand the value and pleasure of physical activity by learning, practicing and performing skills using various kinds of equipment, including balls, ropes and ribbons. The team will perform for peers, parents, and the community during open house and a spring show.  Ball handling, jumping activities, juggling, dance, gymnastics, stunts, cooperative activities and rhythmic activities will be included in the program.  The goal is to promote lifelong wellness and demonstrate how much fun physical activity can be.

South Allegheny School District
South Allegheny Elementary School
Jennifer Wachs, Robin Reinhard

Grant Title:                Family Fluency Fun
Awarded:                   $270.32
Will Benefit:               24 Fifth Graders

To engage families in supporting the development of reading fluency by having parents and guardians learn strategies such as echo reading, choral reading and partner reading and practice these techniques with children at home.  Students will read aloud to their teachers at the beginning of each week and repeat the reading with their families in the evenings.  At the end of each week, students will be evaluated for progress. Reading logs will be maintained.  One goal is to help parents see that they can play important roles in their children’s academic achievement.

South Allegheny School District
South Allegheny Elementary School
Gail Ungar, Dawna O’Keefe, Carol Rothey

Grant Title:                Family Book Factory
Awarded:                   $291.41
Will Benefit:               250 Elementary Students

To promote literacy by engaging students and their families in two evening sessions—one in the spring and another in the fall—in creating handmade books.  Participants will view several non-traditional styles of books – flap books, accordion books, flipbooks, and others.  Using traditional bookmaking tools, families will receive instruction on writing and making their books together.

Steel Valley School District
Steel Valley Middle School
Beth McCallister, Steve Large, Sara Bouton, Mike Hofbauer, Nicole Goga

Grant Title:                Can You Dig It? (A hands-on nnnnunit to immerse students in the natural world)
Awarded:                   $2,500.00                               
Will Benefit:               180 Sixth Graders

To give students the opportunity to create an outdoor classroom – planning, designing and blueprinting a bird and butterfly garden surrounding an existing pond.  Once completed, the outdoor classroom will be used for various educational experiences such as the study of migrating birds and butterflies, learning about plants that attract butterflies and hummingbirds and reading and writing poetry about nature.

Steel Valley School District
Steel Valley Middle School
Heather Huber, Steve Singer

Grant Title:                Game Night with Classroom vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvPlay
Awarded:                   $1,738.49                               
Will Benefit:               450 Middle School Students

To reinforce classroom learning through monthly, family game nights involving educational games that require math and reading skills, strategic thinking and problem solving.

West Jefferson Hills School District
Thomas Jefferson High School
Michele Stoicovy, Christine Bacola, Georgia Hurlston, Sherry Meucci

Grant Title:                “Sew” Business        
Awarded:                   $1,515.00       
Will Benefit:               15 Students directly, district- vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvwide indirectly       

To help students launch and run a small business selling products at the school store and online.  Students in Business and Family Consumer Science classes will collaborate in starting an embroidery business aimed at producing a school-spirit clothing line. Running the company will provide students with hands-on experience in applying the business principles they’ve learned in class—from purchasing materials and keeping inventory to product marketing and calculating profit margins. Students also will create and maintain a website for community sales.

West Jefferson Hills School District
Jefferson, McClellan and Gill Hall Elementary Schools
Adam Gebhardt, Dennis Petersen, Connie Kocis, Megan Bigham, Dan Owen

Grant Title:                Picture This!   
Awarded:                   $4,363.58       
Will Benefit:               1,250 Students, Grades K-5    

To add a photography component to several areas of the curriculum and establish community education classes.   Photography can be used to enhance learning, illustrate ideas, and enrich activities in science, math, social studies, and language arts.  Initially, photography will be used in art class with students learning the technical aspects of using a digital camera.  The students will view the work of famous photographers and explore composition, the elements of art, and the principles of design. Upper-level grades will take photographs of clay sculptures and make them come to life through animation.  In science classes, can use their photographic skills to document plant growth or illustrate chemical changes. In social studies, they can create animations of famous explorers or document local historic landmarks.  In language arts, students can make picture journals or illustrate parts of speech.  In addition to enhancing classroom instruction, photography is an ideal way to engage the community through the district’s adult education courses to promote life-long learning.

West Jefferson Hills School District
Pleasant Hills Middle School
Jennifer Cramer, Sarah Zabielski, Danna Corsini, Adam Zunic, Matt Betlar

Grant Title:                Pleasant Hills Productions: A vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvMiddle School TV Studio
Awarded:                   $2,003.77       
Will Benefit:               620 Middle School Students

To create a middle school TV studio with students scripting and producing various segments to air to the school network.  Interviewing, researching, writing and oral presentation skills will be developed and enhanced.  Initially students will research unsolved mysteries from history—such as Amelia Earhart’s disappearance over the Pacific or the disappearance of aircraft and ships in the Bermuda Triangle—and script video segments about them with plausible resolutions.  Students will serve as stage crew, actors, and producers.  Future ongoing uses of the studio include weekly student-produced segments for school announcements, service project updates and other school news.