This year saw a return for most of our applicants to more normal circumstances, and we are very thankful for that. We received a number of creative applications for populations with a high level of need. We are so thankful to all of the people who contribute to their communities through the programs they imagine, plan and then bring to fruition. They are all our heroes.
In 2022, 33 grants were awarded for a total of $85,928.29 in the following categories:
Grants were awarded to the following:
CALIFORNIA
El Dorado County
Boys and Girls Club of Lake Tahoe
South Lake Tahoe
$3,000.00
Funds will purchase furniture and wall decorations that will outfit a dedicated Learning Center where intervention programs and other activities can take place away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the Club. The Learning Center will be used by 250-300 students over the course of a year and would support small group work as well as one-on-one activities.
Lake Tahoe Unified School District
South Lake Tahoe
$2,400.00
STEM materials will stimulate the minds of students and develop a strong foundation in science and math. These funds will purchase building equipment, balls and ramps, marble mazes, turn and learn magnetic gears, early coding with robots and more. These will be used to build skills and confidence for 24 students with special needs.
Lake Tahoe Unified School District
South Lake Tahoe
$3,000.00
Funds will purchase supplies supporting environmental field trips that are the core component of the District’s STEAM program. 2000 students receive outdoor experiential learning opportunities utilizing everything from water test kits to tarps and buckets. Books will also be purchased to provide a language arts component that will prepare for the outdoor activities in advance.
Marine Research and Education, Inc.
South Lake Tahoe
$3,000.00
This is a placed-based science program for third and fifth graders and selected high school students. On-land and on-the water experiences help students learn about the ecosystem of the Lake Tahoe Basin. These funds will pay for captains and teachers, charter boats and supplies and will support more than 5 classes participating in the program.
Nevada County
Together We Rise
Brea
$3,000.00
Funds will provide STEM boxes for foster youth in Nevada County. These boxes will instill an early love and appreciation for STEM among a vulnerable and at-risk population. Funds will provide 30 STEM kits including four science experiments for youth aged 5-12 in the County.
Nevada Union High School Choral Boosters Clubs
Grass Valley
$3,000.00
Use of recording techonology will improve the digital literacy of choir and music students. Purchases will support improvements in digital literacy, education regarding future career opportunities and training in use of state-of-the-art platforms. While a smaller subset will actually use this equipment, 250 students have broader access and understanding of its availability.
Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital Foundation
Grass Valley
$3,000.00
Funds will purchase books provided during well-child medical visits. Read Me a Story develops a child’s love and interest in reading that prepares them for entry into school. Funding would provide books for up to 600 6-8 year olds.
Seven Hills Intermediate School
Nevada City
$1,000.00
Funds will provide physical support of a Medieval Feast historical immersive day. This project will follow many weeks of learning about the feudal system culminating in a medieval feast. Seventh graders at the school participate in the project.
Headwaters Science Institute
Soda Springs
$3,000.00
This program supports students’ understanding of the process of science and gives them a deeper understanding of science. Ten local teachers will choose a science standard they need/want to meet, and these funds will prepare those teachers, provide them with an applicable Lunch With A Scientist video and help them prepare the lesson plan. These classes will be held in the Incline, Truckee and/or Nevada City area.
Adventure Risk Challenge
Truckee
$2,000.00
Students will write, film and edit videos as part of a 34-day Tahoe summer course. Funds will be used to purchase field guides, video cameras, microphones, some instructor pay, printing and supplies. The student-narrated 3-minute instructional videos will be distributed to community members via social media and as part of an e-newsletter.
Tahoe Truckee Unified School District
Truckee
$3,000.00
This program promotes a love of writing and reading while strengthening students’ writing skills in the summer. Funds will provide a teacher stipend and support the publication of works written by 100 students in grades three through five. The Writers Workshops will be held twice a week for four weeks.
COLORADO
Adams County
Colorado Foundation for Agriculture
Westminster
$3,000.00
A book will be developed that shows the importance of Colorado’s forests and their interaction with livestock. This program promotes the importance of literacy among 5th graders and has interdisciplinary impacts. Funds would be used to pay for illustration of the book and buy a portion of the books (175).
Eagle County
Basalt Regional Library
Basalt
$500.00
Additions to the Basalt Regional Library Baby Gym program will enhance school readiness for toddlers. Funds will be used for at least one Toddler Sensory Table and several foam Balance Beams to enhance the overall project. This program increases equitable access in the community.
Roaring Fork Conservancy
Basalt
$3,000.00
Creation of a “Watershed Pen Pal” program will connect students across the continental divide (from Basalt Middle School to Aurora Public Schools) and help them understand where water comes from and where it travels. Funds will support program set up, supplies and instructions for programs. 16 classes will be taught.
Eagle Valley Elementary School PTA
Eagle
$3,000.00
Teacher access to leveled reading material in both English and Spanish for classroom use will be expanded. Funds will purchase additional leveled reading material for grades K-5. In addition, funds will be used to host a Family Literacy Workshop that will build a partnership between teachers and families to develop literacy skills.
Berry Creek Middle School
Edwards
$3,000.00
A raft trip will be the culmination of earth science, social studies and math units for 6th graders (and possibly more). This celebration of STEM learning had been postponed through COVID and the plan is to bring it back this year. The experience of what the students studied will motivate them to protect it in the future. Over 220 students will be involved.
Education Foundation of Eagle Valley
Edwards
$2,500.00
This program empowers educators to deliver successful reading and writing outcomes for every student, no matter their social or economic status. Funds will purchase the RAZ-KIDS digital library licenses for one year to promote equity in reading and writing.
English in Action
El Jabel
$3,000.00
Matching individuals with volunteer tutors will assist adult immigrants learning English. Funds will support the Small Groups Tutoring Program and be used for books and computer needs during 2022. This program is expected to serve approximately 120 adult learners.
Garfield County
Raising a Reader Aspen to Parachute
Glenwood Springs
$3,000.00
The Super Summer Learning Adventures Camp, including follow-up outreach, reinforces early learning skills through meaningful experiences with trained educators. Funds will be used for a two-week summer camp and four-week outreach program for 15 families that include anywhere from 1-4 children. Feedback from previous camps indicated that the follow-up outreach was important to success of the program.
Grand County
Friends of Grand County Library
Granby
$3,000.00
The Summer Reading/Learning Program of the Grand County Library District will focus on water – water conservation and the importance of Grand County as a source of water in particular. Funds will be used to promote participation in the program and enhance awareness of library resources. The program will include enrichment events with guest presenters. Over 800 attendees were served by a similar program last year.
Grand County Historical Association
Hot Sulphur Springs
$857.00
This project will help young readers learn about the contributions of women in building the state of Colorado and local communities. Readers will learn about indigenous, pioneer and female leaders in many areas. Funds will be used to support the publication of a Kindle/eBook in partnership with local libraries and schools.
Pitkin County
CWS College Outreach
Aspen
$3,000.00
This Middle School Outreach Program will encourage students to consider STEAM educational and career opportunities. Funds will be used to support an outreach coordinator to meet with students monthly throughout the school year, for buses for field trips to explore STEAM opportunities and for guest speaker expenses. Outreach will extend to approximately 3,500 students in Eagle, Garfield and Pitkin counties.
Anderson Ranch Arts Center
Snowmass
$2,900.00
Collaboration with YouthZone will increase art access for teens of all backgrounds. Funds will be used for a four-week visual storytelling workshop for at-risk 8th-12th grade students. This program blends photography, sound and video with storytelling. Funds will be used for equipment.
Routt County
Horizons Specialized Services
Steamboat Springs
$2,800.00
The “literacy through language and movement” program will coach parents and use play to more effectively teach the building blocks of literacy. Funds will be used for items that encourage movement – devices, apps, board books and supplies. This organization continues to provide services to families in Routt, Grand and Moffat counties.
Integrated Community
Steamboat Springs
$3,000.00
Funds will support the “Our Study Friends” tutoring program. The program will expand to the South Routt/Oak Creek School District by training 50 volunteers to address the needs of 50 students as well as fulfilling some material needs.
Summit County
Education Foundation of the Summit
Breckenridge
$3,000.00
Funds will purchase 2 low cost books each month during the school year for over 150 children in the Dillon Valley and Silverthorne schools. Principals select students for the program and teachers help students select books each month. The number of books in a child’s home is directly correlated to their literacy success both in the short term and the long term as they develop into lifelong readers.
Mountain Top Children’s Museum
Breckenridge
$2,750.00
The afternoon Space Club program is an engineering curriculum providing weekly design challenges to encourage children to think outside the box. Weekly lessons include instructional videos and live career chats that connect activities to real-world professionals, science concepts and exciting current events. Funds will support attendance by those who would otherwise be unable to participate.
Summit Historical Society
Dillon
$3,000.00
The Summit Historical Society will expand a program that communicates how the UTE people (who have lived in Colorado the longest) used science, technology, engineering and math to survive and prosper. A travel module will be built for the program, additional locations will be identified and training and delivery of the program will occur.
NEVADA
Carson City County
Pioneer Academy
Carson City
$3,000.00
A “Discovery Block” program will allow students blocks of time to work on interdisciplinary projects. This program will involve 130 students and will focus on projects that apply interdisciplinary skills to projects that are broader in scope, like building a greenhouse or a community book box. Funds will be used for materials to build and install chosen projects.
Washoe County
Tahoe’s Connection for Families
Incline Village
$2,171.29
The “Our Beautiful Tahoe” program utilizes field trips, circle time, songs and rhymes to develop early childhood literacy. Funds would be used for books and supplies, manipulatives and outdoor education specialists.
UTAH
Summit County
Park City Reads
Park City
$1,550.00
Resources and support will empower struggling readers to reach their full potential. Funds will be used to purchase the 1 to 1 Geodes Tutor Kit (176 books) for a new lending library available to parents so they can better support their children at home. Parents will be able to borrow and return books during office hours when they can interact with advocates and learn more about available resources.
Trailside Elementary School
Park City
$1,500.00
This program is a Chemist’s Carnival and Cardboard Carnival, a two-pronged STEAM program exploring the science of chemical and physical changes through carnival foods and the engineering, math and visual art concepts behind common carnival games. Funds will purchase snow cone, cotton candy and hot dog machines, construction materials and other supplies for use during the Carnival. The program will be presented in 2nd grade classrooms
WISCONSIN
Clark County
Colby Community Library
Colby
$3,000.00
A “Remembering the Past…Understanding the Present…Envisioning the Future” program will expand on the quantity and quality of the library materials in our Local History/Wisconsin History room. Funds would be used to purchase adult and youth history books, biography and local books and supplies. This Library provides a gathering place and activities where they are limited. They would expect 400 to use the requested books in the first year, and 250 to attend programs.