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Heather Mahler, Program Director
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Community Foundation Awards nearly $60,000 in Education Grants
Twenty two school programs on Lower Eastern Shore receive funding
November 16, 2015--- The Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore (CFES) honored Maryland Lower Shore schools and educators with $59,968 in grants through the Foundation’s 2015 Education Award Grants Program.
Education Awards are made annually in conjunction with National Education Week through a competitive process to public and private schools on the lower Eastern Shore of Maryland. Grants are made to those schools that have developed innovative programs to be particularly beneficial to their students and communities.
“This awards program is the Community Foundation’s principle vehicle for recognizing and rewarding those schools that are engaged in making a particularly creative contribution to the education of our children,” said Erica Joseph, CFES President. “These awards highlight truly remarkable things our dedicated teachers and school administrators are accomplishing,” she added.
Calcott Award of Excellence Celebrated
The Community Foundation honored one school with the Mary Gay Calcott Award of Excellence. The winning school was James M. Bennett High School. In addition to the Calcott Award, this school received $1,000 from the Foundation’s Mary Gay Calcott Memorial Fund.
The award is named for the late Mary Gay Calcott, a professor of English at Salisbury University whose life embodied her ideals of teaching students to think, to express themselves with clarity and to care about the world they live in.
The following programs received Education Award Grants for 2015 during ceremonies held at the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore’s Nonprofit Support Center in Salisbury:
In Somerset County
· Carter G. Woodson Elementary School - to support the pilot of an elementary band program for 5th grade students.
· Carter G. Woodson Elementary School- to support the construction of a multi-sensory room for students under an Individual Education Program (IEP).
· Somerset County Public Schools - to support STEM experiences for 3rd grade students.
· Greenwood Elementary School - to purchase kindles and e-books for a 4th and 5th grade reading program.
· Ewell School- to support technologies associated with a pilot multi-grade distance learning program.
In Wicomico County
· Wicomico County Board of Education - to support Project SMART, which aims to close the high school achievement gap by developing a core of student leaders.
· Pinehurst Elementary School- to support Project Shooting and Shining STARS, which aims to close the elementary age achievement gap by exposing students who need strong interventions to both community leaders and college prep experiences.
· Westside Intermediate School - to support an arts integration experience with Synthetic Theater.
· East Salisbury Elementary School- to purchase music equipment for a 5th grade Guitar for Life program.
· Fruitland Primary School- to purchase music instruments for use in Pre-K through 2nd grades.
· Pemberton Elementary School- to support a literacy artist in residence experience with singer/songwriter Sue Trainor.
· West Salisbury Elementary School- to support a history themed artist integration with Mr. Kwame Shaka Opare.
· James M. Bennett High School-to support the enrichment program "Commit to the C".
· Pinehurst Elementary School- to support after school program transportation expenses.
· Prince Street Elementary School- to support the wraparound parenting program Watch D.O.G.S (Dads of Great Students).
· Parkside High School- to support the CTE project Localize, in partnership with UMES 4-H Extension.
· Parkside High School- to support the CTE First Robotics Team 3389.
· Wicomico Middle School- to support a pilot Environmental Literacy/STEM program.
In Worcester County
· Cedar Chapel Special School- to support the Communicating Social-Emotional Through Writing project.
· Worcester County Board of Educatiom- to support building Next Generation Science Standards into curriculum.
· Pocomoke High School- to purchase iPads for use in the Advanced Placement Pathway program.
· Worcester County Board of Education- to support a middle school male mentoring project aimed at closing the achievement gap.
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Photo caption:
Representatives from the Mary Gay Calcott Fund and James M. Bennett High School celebrate winning the outstanding Award of Excellence from the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore. Pictured (l to r) are: Pete Hutchinson, Kristofer Quintana, Linda Hutchinson, Keith Donoway, Betty Wooten, Rick Wooten and Lisa Forbush.
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About The Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore: Celebrating 30 years of philanthropy, the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore (CFES) has been serving the needs of Wicomico, Worcester and Somerset Counties granting more than $50 million. Through the generosity and vision of our donors, CFES awarded grants totaling more than $4.8 million in fiscal year 2014. CFES brings together donors and builds on community assets through scholarships, grants, advocacy, and leadership development. By focusing on people, organizations, neighborhoods, and nonprofit capacity building, the Foundation addresses community needs in the areas of health, education, arts and culture, community development, and the environment. For more information about the Community Foundation, visit www.cfes.org or call 410-742-9911.
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