News
- BEF Classroom Innovation Grants Awarded
- People were ‘so kind to our students’ during annual BEF phone-athon. School groups collected more than $100,000 in pledges from community donors to support Kids Count Grants.
- BEF has received a $20,000 challenge grant from the Spirit Mountain Community Fund
- Look at What's Happening Around the District…Summer Sounds Program at Beaver Acres
- Beaverton Education Foundation Awards $48,922 in Grants to Beaverton Schools for After-School and Summer Programs
2009 BEF Classroom Innovation Grants Awarded
With thanks to our generous donors, including the Dave Gettling Technology Fund, the Mike Osborne Memorial Award Fund, and Building STEAM 4 All (supported with donations from Spirit Mountain Community Fund, Genentech, Beaverton Rotary and Boyd Applegarth Memorial Fund), Beaverton Education Foundation was able to award $26,566, funding 30 classroom projects.
BEF Classroom Innovation Grants awarded to schools throughout the Southridge High School feeder system: Southridge High, Highland Park Middle, and Cooper Mountain, Hiteon, and McKay Elementary Schools were partially supported by a gift from the Helming Family Foundation. Learn more.
Grant to Foundation a $20,000 Challenge
Beaverton Education Foundation has received a $20,000 challenge grant from the Spirit Mountain Community Fund. The money has been designated for the foundation's Building STEAM 4 All project. The acronym STEAM signifies Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics programs the grant seeks to strengthen. The challenge condition requires the foundation to raise a matching sum to receive the community fund award.
The STEAM 4 All project encourages students to pursue science studies in the classroom and outside the traditional school day. All schools and grades are eligible to participate. Underrepresented groups in science and math classes will be given special consideration for the program.
Summer Sounds Program at Beaver Acres, submitted by Shellie Ritter, First Grade Teacher at Beaver Acres Elementary School
TALK! SING! READ! WRITE! These are the main priorities for about 30 incoming kindergarten, first and second grade students at Beaver Acres Elementary School this summer. They are participating in Summer Sounds, a four week summer school funded by a Beaverton Education Foundation Kid's Count Grant.
A Beaver Acres first grade teacher, Shellie Ritter, developed the program to focus on the oral language development of incoming kindergarten, first, and second graders. The students have fun identifying mystery sounds and applying the sounds of our language to read and communicate. There are only 10 students in each class to facilitate frequent oral language practice.
In our busy lives, adult-child conversation is often limited by cell phone usage, TV, and video games. Summer Sounds puts an emphasis on listening to students and giving them time and guidance to express themselves orally. Research shows that solid oral language development contributes to success in reading, writing, and thinking.
Readers' Theatre, plays, songs, and dedicated one-on-one conversation times are some of the ways oral language is developed through the program. Principal Stacy Geale and Vice- Principal Erica Marson have enjoyed interacting with the students and helping to develop oral language skills. Thanks to Nutrition Services, the students also received free breakfast and lunch daily during the program.
Beaverton Education Foundation Awards $48,922 in Grants to Beaverton Schools for After-School and Summer Programs
The Beaverton Education Foundation announces the recipients of its 2009 BEF Kids Count Grant Awards. Six grants ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 were awarded to school district staff through a competitive grant process. Water, Water Everywhere, Summer Sounds and After-School Enrichment are just a few of the innovative programs BEF is funding this award period.
Due to the generosity of community members, corporate sponsors, Intel, Comcast, Trust Management Services and Portland General Electric, the Foundation was able to award $48,922 to fund after-school and summer school programs that provide tutoring and/or enrichment in reading, writing, science, math and/or the Arts.
