HEF Awards Thousands in Innovation Grants

The Hamden Education Foundation last week awarded a total of $8,124 to support 15 Innovation Grants, benefitting children in all grades ranging from pre-K through 12th grade.   

Grant recipients are educators at 10 of the district’s public schools. The grants support initiatives in science, math, literacy, special education, the arts, and increasing parental involvement.  

Quinnipiac Bank & Trust Company hosted a reception celebrating the grants. The following grants were awarded:

• FIRST Robotics Team, Dan deNicolo and Mike Kozera, Hamden High School Robotics Club: Enable new team to design, build, program, and operate a robot pursuant to the FIRST Robotics terms, and participate in FIRST Robotics competitions

•  Enhancing 4th Grade Science Units on Electricity and Motion and Design, Shelby Irwin, Spring Glen:  Supplementing the Electricity unit to include explorations involving alternative energy, and supplementing the Motion and Design unit to introduce students to computer control technology, writing programs to ope rate models, and engineering.

• Expanding Science Education: 3-D Fabrication Technology, Hamden High School Science Club: Help purchase 3-D printer to fabricate parts for the Science Team’s building projects for competitions

• Bio-Chemistry Lab Protein Gel Technology, Kathleen Bower-Phipps, Hamden High School: Equipment for new Biochemistry course; equipment can also be used for other advanced science courses at the high school.

• Kelair CO2 Dragster Launcher: Improving Equipment and Reducing Future Expenses, Frank Kachmar, Hamden Middle School: Improved equipment (dragster launcher) for engineering and design elective will enhance student learning and reduce future expenses.

• Math Nights, Karen Franklin, Helen Street, Math nights and take-home materials for parents and children to promote deeper understandings of the math curriculum, promote parent involvement, promote mathematical conversations at home, and allow parents and children to engage in math at home in a fun and exciting way.

• Pre-K Parent Engagement, Suzanne Perlroth and Jean English, Alice Peck Pre-K: Develop a literacy and math parent-engagement policy, including take-home activities that promote parent engagement, so that parents are empowered to and develop the habit of actively participating in their children’s education.

• Male Mentoring, Megan Dietrichsen, Carla Luchies, Mary Gatison and Karen Butler, Ridge Hill: Creating a new program to support students who lack a strong male role-model in their lives.

• Therapeutic Texts to Support Students’ Emotional, Behavioral, and Cognitive Development, Erika Johnson, Spring Glen: Books to enhance students’ ability to self-regulate their emotions, improve their interpersonal relationships, and develop problem-solving skills while also developing their literacy and academic skills.

• Social Thinking Instruction of Students on the Autism Spectrum, Marissa Bishop, West Woods: Curriculum tools for school-based social and emotional supports to enhance implementation of best-practices for students on the Autism spectrum.

• Feeling Word Curriculum: Reading and Emotional Development, Marcie Daken, West Woods: Feeling Word books for grades K-2 to support social and emotional learning, as well as literacy.

• Get Caught Reading, Allison Wills, Bear Path: Literacy initiative to promote love of reading.

• Multi-Lingual Books, Tricia Ciaburri-Rodriguez, Shepard Glen: Multi-lingual books to promote love of reading and to promote family involvement for students who are English Language Learners.

• Book Club Bridging English and Social Studies curriculum, Diane DelCervo and Kathryne Bosch, Hamden Middle School: Creating after-school book club to read and discuss novels aligned with the Ancient Civilizations social studies curriculum.

• Jan Brett Winter Literature Day, Betsy Pattison, Meghan Witheral, Jennifer Methot, Dunbar Hill: Implementing Common Core standards and promoting a love of reading in kindergarten.