Co-op mini-grants fund classroom projects
Supporting our community’s future leaders is an important part of West Florida Electric Cooperative’s commitment to community. One of the ways WFEC demonstrates its support of local students is by providing mini-grants for teachers at schools throughout its service area in Washington, Holmes, Jackson and Calhoun Counties.
This year, mini-grants totaling $10,000 are available for teachers at area schools. Part of the funding is provided by the National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association and the National Rural Education Association, which will award ten $500 mini-grants nationwide for classroom projects during the 2002 – 2003 school year. WFEC will match that amount with an additional $500 for any local teacher who receives one of the NRECA/NREA mini-grants.
Any rural kindergarten through twelfth-grade teacher whose school is within a community WFEC serves or whose students’ homes are served by the Co-op can apply. The grants are intended to fund projects featuring student investigation of some aspect of the science of energy or electricity. Teachers applying for the grants are encouraged to plan projects according to the needs and curiosity of their students. For example, some students may want to examine how the local geology relates to energy; others may prefer to explore alternative energy sources for the future.
Grant recipients may use the money for anything that will enable them and their students to complete the project, including field trips, books, computer software or equipment. The grant also may be used to extend or expand an existing project if the project’s scope meets the grant guidelines. In evaluating the grant applications, judges look for project designs that demonstrate cooperation among students and their teachers and the community, encourage high levels of student involvement, and are appropriate for age and grade levels.
Previously, Marianna High School Technology teacher Genia Smith received a Co-op mini-grant to purchase a propane launcher and materials for her students to build hot air balloons. Another year, one of the mini-grants provided equipment for Linda Pigott’s second-grade class at Kate M. Smith Elementary School in Chipley to study electricity and magnetism.
WFEC has contacted all area school principals with information about application for the mini-grants. Teachers or parents also may call WFEC Communication Supervisor John Thornton at (850)263-3231 or 1-800-342-7400, extension 1142, for additional information.
Photo: Genia Smith’s Technology students at Marianna High School make and fly hot air balloons using materials and a propane launcher purchased with a co-op mini-grant.
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