By Johnathon Shaffer / Sports Editor
NPHS, and the district as a whole, spends a lot of its budget on improving the schools’ infrastructure, facilities, and technology. This can sometimes make teachers feel like they’ve been left in the dust, and as if they aren’t the focus of the school, as the primary purpose of the schools in the first place: to teach. Fortunately, there are other sources of support that allow teachers to be able to have funds to teach how they want to be able to teach.
The New Palestine Education Foundation has assisted teachers with their funds and supported them through grants in many ways. Since their establishment in 2010, the community organization has provided thousands of dollars in grant money to support teachers and students in the district.
In recent years, they have been growing to be able to reach out and assist more staff than ever before, however, they are always looking for ways to continue to grow and assist more.
One suggestion to continue to grow is to expand the windows of application for grant money.
“Our staff grant program grows every year as we have more funds to offer. This year we funded over $20,000 in educator grants. We currently offer grants in the fall only, and I would love to see the program evolve to include both fall and spring grant opportunities for staff. This would be beneficial because not everyone knows what their needs will be for the entire year,” director of NPEF Trisha Ennis said.
Another way for the NPEF to potentially grow is for them to branch out to the student aspect of the school, for potential scholarships.
“A next natural step to funding our educators, and schools, would be to fund our students directly in the form of scholarships. Although we have many additional education-based grant programs, we do not yet have a student college scholarship program. I would love to see the foundation provide an annual scholarship to one or more of our graduating students pursuing a degree in education,” Ennis said.
The grant money for the staff is not just granted towards traditional teachers. Every member of the staff is able to apply for grant money to improve the school or the process of learning in some way.
“NPEF has been offering these grants to teachers for several years. Last year Dr. Pleak said that she views everyone on our staff as an educator, and we believe that too. So, this year, we opened up applications to all NPCS staff for the first time. We received applications from staff who are not traditional classroom teachers, and also funded grants for Building and Grounds and Transportation for the first time,” Ennis said.
A prime example of this is what Raven Smathers, driver of school bus 25, has done with her grant program. She is planning to implement a program on her bus, adding a book station to her bus for students to read. The books are meant to bring older elementary students together with younger ones, and have a bond created between them, while also promoting reading outside of the classroom environment, and for them to enjoy stories.
These grants are a huge relief for the staff, due to the ease of expansion in the classroom environment without creating a few tears off of a teacher’s checkbook.
“Every grant that is awarded makes an impact. Students get to enjoy expanded learning opportunities and experience stronger academic outcomes. While staff, who often spend their own money for these items, are relieved of that personal financial burden. These grants aren’t just about buying materials or funding ideas, they are about investing in people, our amazing NPCS staff and the incredible students. They are our future and are worth every penny we invest in them,” Ennis said.
