MINI-GRANTS FOR EDUCATION 2011-2012



A program designed to provide small grants o help develop innovative education projects.

Revised July, 2014

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A BRIGHT IDEA....

The Education Foundation of Henry County, Inc.

“Lighting the Way to Our Future!”

PO Box 348

McDonough, Georgia 30253

(706) 769-7947 (phone) (706) 769-7948 (fax)

Email: zgattie@

Henry Chamber of Commerce - Executive Committee

Mr. Jonathan King, Chair

Mr. Jonathan Schwartz, Chair-Elect

Mr. Mack Guest, Past Chair

Ms. Ronda Holloway, Treasurer

Mr. Bob Taylor, Secretary

Mr. Tom Odom, Interim President

Education Foundation of Henry County, Inc.

Mr. Jonathan King, Chair

Mr. Jonathan Schwartz, Chair-Elect

Mr. Mack Guest, Past Chair

Mr. Tom Odom, Interim President

Ex-Officio Members

Mr. Robert Chambers – Athens Academy

Dr. Jason Branch – Henry County Schools Superintendent

Mr. Tom Odom, Interim President

WHAT IS A MAXI-GRANT?

The Education Foundation of Henry County, Inc. has developed a program offering Maxi-Grants to Henry County teachers and staff who wish to implement creative, innovative educational projects for which funding is not available through regular school sources.

Maxi-grant monies may be used to purchase materials, supplies, equipment, etc., necessary for the successful completion of the project. For example, a Maxi-Grant could be used to purchase science equipment for a special science experiment, or to purchase software packages for computer applications in any number of curriculum areas, or to fund parent study skill programs designed to improve the quality of parental involvement in their child’s homework.

Specialized educational trips will be considered only if they are an integral part of the proposed project. Maxi-grant funds may not be used as personal honoraria for the applicant, other teachers, or other school personnel.

HOW MAXI-GRANTS ARE AWARDED.

The Maxi-Grant Review Committee of the Education Foundation of Henry County, Inc will review Maxi-Grant proposals. The grant award process is designed to provide funds for special programs responsive to classroom needs and to the desire to know and learn.

The Foundation solicits proposals from teachers and others who wish to initiate learning experiences, which require up to $25,000.00 of funding for which other funding sources are not available.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

Any individual or group of teachers, counselors, media specialists, resource teachers, administrators, or educational support staff members (i.e. lunchroom employees, bus drivers, etc.) employed in any SACS accredited public or private school in Henry County is eligible to apply.

HOW TO APPLY

The Maxi-grant Guidelines are short and easy to complete.

✓ Submit information on pages 5, 6 and 7 by the deadline. July 18, 2014

✓ Please be sure to include your email address and total cost of project on

the lines provided on page 5.

Additional forms are available by calling the Henry County Chamber of Commerce at 706-769-7947 or Email zgattie@.

HOW TO PREPARE YOUR PROPOSAL

The following guidelines must be followed. Proposals not meeting the criteria will be disqualified.

• USE CAUTION: DO NOT MENTION NAMES IN THE CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL THAT WOULD IDENTIFY THE APPLICANT, THE SCHOOL, THE PRINCIPAL, OR THE CLASS INVOLVED!!!

* All proposals must be typed on 8-1/2" x 11" paper.

* Make a copy of the cover sheet and complete the information requested, including signatures

* Follow the sample outline and respond to every item as completely as possible.

* The proposal should not exceed four (4) pages including the title page.

* If you wish to provide information not requested in the outline but that you feel would promote

a better understanding of your proposal, it should be shown as item VII in your outline.

THE SELECTION PROCESS (See Rubric on page 8)

Upon arrival at the Chamber of Commerce, your proposal will be assigned an identification number. Your cover sheet will be replaced with a cover sheet that omits your name and school location; it will show only the identification number. The judging committee will rank the applications received according to the extent to which the project: Please see Scoring Rubric on page 8.

* Challenges students at different ability levels;

* Enriches the educational experience for students;

* Is creative;

* Has realistic goals;

* Is cost effective.

The committee will submit its preliminary selections to the total Foundation Board of Directors, which in turn will make the final selections. Funds will be awarded according to the Maxi-grant budget each year.

DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS

Upon approval of a Maxi-grant proposal, the Foundation will create a special account at the school in the recipient’s name. The recipient will be required to maintain records of all expenditures. Upon completing the project, these records, along with the evaluation of the project, will be submitted to the Foundation.

OWNERSHIP OF MATERIALS

Equipment and materials purchased through the Maxi-grant Program will remain the property of the schools.

* The person receiving the grant will have exclusive use of the equipment and materials for as long as the project continues.

* Any unexpended grant funds are to be returned to the Foundation.

PROJECT EVALUATION/ See page 9

During the project, the Foundation Committee will review the progress of the program and may conduct at least one on-site review.

To ensure accountability, Project Directors (Teacher) will be required to submit a written final performance and budget report to the committee. Include all receipts for purchases and a one page description of project and outcome. See Evaluation Form on page 9

If project evaluation is not submitted, your school will be ineligible to receive Maxi-grant awards the following year.

This report should be forwarded to: Zoe Gattie, Henry Chamber of Commerce, PO Box 348,

Watkinsville, GA 30677 no later than May 2, 2015.

An interim report may also be requested if the project exceeds one semester in length.

MAXI-GRANT SCHEDULE FOR SCHOOL YEAR 2014-2015

Applications Distributed: February 4, 2014

Proposal submission deadline: July 18, 2014

Grants announced: Week of September 6, 2014

Funds awarded: November 16, 2014, 5:00 pm, North Georgia University

Project completion deadline: April 15, 2015

Project evaluation/financial reports submitted: May 2, 2015

NOTE: Under special circumstances, exceptions to the above schedule may be made. After the awards period, if you have a concern, please contact the Chamber of Commerce for any exceptions to the schedule.

MAXI-GRANT PROPOSAL TITLE PAGE

Name of Applicant Alan Coleman

Principal’s Name Lori Squires

School Wesley Lakes Elementary School

School Address 685 McDonough Parkway, McDonough, GA 30253

Applicant’s E-mail alancoleman@henry.k12.ga.us

0

Date July 8, 2014 Total Cost of Project: __$24,370.46_____________ (up to $25,000.00)

Title of Project: Technology Enabled Elementary Career Awareness Activities

(Proposal Due Date: July 18, 2014)

I have read the Maxi-grant Application information and wish to submit this application in accordance with the Maxi-grant Application Guidelines.

Alan Coleman ______ Lori Squires________________

Applicant’s signature Principal’s Signature

July 8, 2014 ________ July 8, 2014____________

Date Date

A BRIGHT IDEA....

THE EDUCATION FOUNDATION OF HENRY COUNTY, INC.

“LIGHTING THE WAY TO OUR FUTURE!”

Return to: Education Foundation of Henry County, Inc.

Zoe Gattie

P.O. Box 348

McDonough, Georgia 30253

On a separate sheet of paper, please submit the following information. Be sure to include the total cost for your proposed project.

Technology Enabled Elementary Career Cluster Activities

I. This project is important to Wesley Lakes Elementary School students and teachers because of its potential to help overcome three shortcomings at the school. First, our teachers do not consistently integrate technology in their instruction in a meaningful way. Second, students are not taught technology literacy skills in an intentional way. Third, we do not have a comprehensive K-5 career development program in place.

The impetus for teachers to integrate technology in their instruction starts with the research that confirms its efficacy. According to research conducted by Dr. Ruben R. Puentedura, who developed the SA-MR model of instructional technology integration, moving instructional use of technology from the convenience stage to the immersive stage has the potential to result in a two- grade increase in student learning, but only if “all levels in the process are implemented correctly.” () Teachers are also charged to integrate instructional technology through the school’s Strategic Improvement Plan, as well as the recently adopted Teacher Keys Effectiveness System performance evaluation process. The bottom line is that the effective integration of technology in instruction leads to improved student learning outcomes.

In 2011, the Georgia State Board of Education adopted the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NET-S), which were developed by the International Society for Technology in Education. The NET-S focus on six areas of student learning: Creativity and Innovation; Communication and Collaboration; Research and Information Fluency; Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making; Digital Citizenship; and Technology Operations and Concepts. The skills developed through the standards are widely considered essential skills for success in college and/or the 21st century workplace, and the earlier students are exposed to them, the more successful they will be at developing those skills.

Student development of career development skills is not only a desired goal of education, it is mandated by the Georgia General Assembly in HB 186, which mandates that the Georgia curriculum be aligned with the national career clusters, and HB 713 which calls for elementary schools to have a comprehensive K-5 career development program.

The vision of the applicant is that the Technology Enabled Elementary Career Cluster Activities project will provide a means of modeling technology enabled instruction in a set of collaborative student learning activities that integrate student technology literacy instruction with student career development instruction.

A byproduct of the project will be an increase in the school’s CCRPI score. As Georgia moves away from the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) educational incentive, the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) measurement protocol is being replaced by the College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI). CCRPI grades schools and school systems on a scale of points that are awarded for a wide array of achievement indicators. One of the indicator categories is named Post Elementary School Readiness, and includes an indicator that measures the percent of students in grades 1-5 who complete the Elementary Career Cluster Activities, which are described on the Georgia Department of Education (GADOE) Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE) website. If Wesley Lakes Elementary School achieved 100% on that single indicator, its CCRPI score would increase 2.7%.

II. What I would like to accomplish (list instructional objectives).

Instructional Objectives for Teachers

The following instructional objectives are based on ISTE’s Standards for Teachers, which were designed to inform effective teaching practices in the 21st Century digital age.

The overarching instructional objective for teachers:

• Teachers will engage students in exploring real-world issues using digital tools and resources.

Supporting instructional objectives for teachers:

• Teachers will participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning.

• Teachers will design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.

• Teachers will develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in managing their own learning.

• Teachers will address the diverse needs of all learners by using learner-centered strategies providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources.

• Teachers will model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.

Instructional Objectives for Students

The following technology focused instructional objectives are based on ISTE’s Standards for Students, which were designed to evaluate the skills and knowledge students need to learn effectively and live productively in the 21st Century digital age.

In grades K-2

• Students will work collaboratively using a variety of technologies to produce a digital presentation or product in a curriculum area. (Career Awareness)

• Students will independently apply digital tools and resources to address a variety of tasks and problems.

• Students will communicate about technology using developmentally appropriate and accurate terminology.

In grades 3-5

• Students will produce a media-rich digital story about a significant local event based on first-person interviews.

• Students will use digital-imaging technology to modify or create graphic works for use in a digital presentation.

• Students will conceptualize, guide, and manage individual or group learning projects using digital planning tools with teacher support.

The following Career Awareness instructional objectives are based on the GADOE Elementary Career Cluster Activities Guidance Document, and were designed to promote Career Awareness in grades K-5. The Career Awareness skills developed in elementary school serve as the foundation for Career Exploration activities in middle school and Career Development Activities in high school.

In grades K-2

• Students learn about different kinds of work.

• Students learn what it means to be a good worker.

• Students learn about Georgia’s 17 Career Clusters including the Energy cluster.

In grades 3-5

• Students will use informal career inventories to identify possible occupations.

• Students will explore career decision-making models.

• Students will explore occupations in the various career clusters.

III. How I propose to do the work:

Narrative: Two of the challenges at Wesley Lakes Elementary School are the lack of technology skills instruction and the lack of career awareness instruction. The former exists because of a lack of teacher skills in, and the lack of infrastructure required for, implementing technology literacy instruction. The latter exists because of a lack of awareness of the mandate for career awareness instruction. The infrastructure issue is being solved during the summer of 2014 with the installation of building-wide wireless network access and the purchase of 100 Lenovo ThinkPad tablets. The availability of wireless access, combined with the tablets, enables this project, which is envisioned to train teachers in technology skills instruction by integrating that training into career awareness lessons for the students. The basic plan is for each class to visit the media center, where the media specialist will model the initial technology enabled career awareness lesson (TECAL). Then, the classroom teacher and the media specialist will collaborate on the design and implementation of a second TECAL, also in the media center. Finally, the classroom teacher will design and implement a third TECAL, in the classroom, with coaching and observation provided by the media specialist. The process will repeat until every classroom teacher has been trained.

A. Steps to be taken in meeting instructional objectives.

1. The media specialist will consult with the grade-level classroom teachers to choose the initial career cluster activity.

2. The media specialist will modify the activity as needed to enable technology integration.

3. The media specialist will identify apps needed for the tablets and secure their installation on the tablets.

4. The media specialist will design and implement the technology enabled career awareness student lesson, as a model of instruction for the classroom teacher.

5. After the lesson, the classroom teacher and the media specialist will meet to reflect on the experience and begin planning the second career awareness lesson, which will be designed and implemented collaboratively.

6. After the second lesson, another reflection meeting will take place, followed by the classroom teacher planning and implementing a third lesson, with the media specialist serving as an observer and instructional coach.

7. After the third lesson, another reflection meeting will occur during which the emphasis will be on exploring ideas for implementing the newly learned technology-based instructional skills in other content areas.

B. Time involved

• Length of project: The entire school year: the model lessons will occur during the first twelve calendar weeks; the collaborative lessons will occur during the second twelve calendar weeks; the teacher implemented lessons will occur during the third twelve calendar weeks.

• Days per week required: Two.

• Hours per day required: Two for planning each lesson; one for implementing each lesson.

C. People involved

• General subject area: Technology Literacy, and Career Awareness

• Number of students involved: 525

• Number of teachers and/or staff involved: 25

D. Materials

Instructional materials will be developed through the modification of materials included in each of the 17 Grade Level Career Cluster Activities.

IV. Timeline for assessing accomplishments and objectives (describe program evaluation

procedure).

• Pre-Assessment – Conducted before initial Career Awareness Activity Lesson

Conduct a baseline assessment of students’ technology literacy skills (instrument to be determined)

Conduct a baseline assessment of teachers’ level of effective integration of technology in

instruction (instrument to be determined)

• Post-Assessment – Conducted after the third Career Awareness Activity Lesson

Conduct a post-assessment of students’ technology literacy skills

Conduct a post-assessment of teachers’ level of effective integration of technology in instruction

V. Student Assessment (tell how student progress will be assessed and reported to students, parents,

teachers, and others):

A report of the student pre-assessment and post-assessment will be developed and communicated to the students, their parents and teachers. The GADOE also has a Tracking Form that itemizes the career awareness activities completed by each student as he/she progresses through the elementary school grade levels. This form will be used for tracking and reporting, and a copy of it will be communicated to students, parents, and teachers as well. A copy of the form is attached to this application on page 12.

The teacher pre-assessment and post-assessments will be provided to the teachers, and the post-assessment will be provided to the administration for inclusion in TKES documentation.

VI. Proposed budget:

A. Materials/supplies

Any expenditures required for materials, supplies, and software licensing will be

funded by Title 1 Focus School grant funds, based on the emergent nature of this

learning intervention.

B. Equipment

$18,732.90 for 30 Lenovo ThinkPad Tablets

$3,710.40 for 30 wireless keyboards

$1,927.16 for 1 management cart

Although the school has already purchased 100 Lenovo tablets, and three mobile management carts to be used for circulating the tablets to classrooms, I have been informed that classroom use, outside of the media center, will always take precedence over media center use. It will be difficult to implement the Technology Enabled Elementary Career Cluster Activities project, and the 50 media center based lessons it calls for, if the availability of a set of tablets is uncertain. The vision for this expenditure is that the media center will have a dedicated set of tablets always available for the implementation of the project. It is also anticipated that the project will have to be repeated in subsequent years, although on a smaller basis, as new teachers arrive at the school. The media specialist also intends to utilize the tablets for other technology enabled lessons in other content areas, so the impact of the implementation of the project will continue after its specified timeline.

C. Total Cost

$24,370.46

Elementary Guidance Tracking Form

Student Name: (Please Print) _________________________ Grade Level______

Name of Current Enrolled School______________________ System_____________________

Name of Receiving School___________________________ System_____________________

Name of School Official Completing Form: (Please Print)____________________________________

Title____________________________________

Signature________________________________

Phone Number____________________________

Email address_____________________________

Instructions: Please check the appropriate box for completed and not completed career activities

|Grade 1 Activities Completed |

|( ) Agriculture, Foods, & Natural Resources |

|( ) Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security |

|( ) Transportation, Distribution & Logistics |

|Grade 2 Activities Completed |

|( ) Arts, AV/Technology, & Communications |

|( ) Education & Training |

|( ) Health Science |

|Grade 3 Activities Completed |

|( ) Energy |

|( ) Hospitality & Tourism |

|( ) Human Services |

|Grade 4 Activities Completed |

|( ) Architecture & Construction |

|( ) Business Management & Administration |

|( ) Manufacturing |

|( ) Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM |

|) |

|Grade 5 Activities Completed |

|( ) Finance |

|( ) Government & Public Administration |

|( ) Information Technology |

|( ) Marketing |

|Grade 5 Career Portfolio |

|( ) Completed |

For questions, please contact Dr. Myrel Seigler, Program Manager for School Counselors, at mseigler@doe.k12.ga.us or 404-657-8324.

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