Grants Recipients - Connie Bohrer, Betsy Smith & Heather Von Uderitz // Book club gatherings in July and August. Each of our three reading specialists at State Street School will lead a one-hour book group session for each one of the three grade levels. They will engage in discussions around standards-based questions and model high-impact comprehension strategies to counteract summer loss.

Grant Recipient - Rebecca Goodell // Each year the 4th graders study life in colonial times and visit a one-room schoolhouse in the spring. As the students read and summarize the details of colonial life, they write in their “horn books” imitating how children may have learned long ago. Students generally make their horn books each year, but they are not durable, or reusable. The 4th grade team would like to purchase durable and reusable hornbooks cut from Sintra (hard PVC board).

Grant Recipient - Kate Hardy // Nikki Grimes is an author and a prolific artist. She has written many award winning books for children and young adults. On November 2, 2018 she will be talking to the entire ninth grade class about her poetry and verse novels. She will follow-up the class talk with one or two smaller break-out sessions. The timing of the visit aligns with the ninth grade poetry unit.

Grant Recipient - Doug Lewis // Mr. Lewis will spend 40 hours upgrading his current pre-calculus website to include various videos for student use. The videos will consist of tutorials and examples of problems covered in class. Students will be involved in helping to create the videos. They will then be cut and uploaded to the website. The videos will assist students with completing homework assignments and studying for tests and quizzes. The district has also committed to funding an additional 50+ summer hours for this project.

Grant Recipient - Kelley McQuiggan // Assistance provided for travel expenses to OOTM Worlds.

Grant Recipients - Amy Tormey and Kate Webster //

Grant Recipient - Paul Blair // Author of "Big Fish" will visit HS to discuss the production with cast and crew, meet with a number of HS English classes to discuss the creative writing process

Grant Recipients - Pete Chapman and Aisha McConochy // Syracuse Stage presentation for AP Comp & Lit students reading in class.

Grant Recipient - Rob DeMass // Purpose Farms helps neglected and troubled youth build confidence and positive relationships by working with friendly farm animals. 20 seniors taking SUNY Government (3 credits through University in the HS) will help for a day at the farm, and participate in a session of "goat yoga." They will earn 3 hours of community service toward the 10 hours required by this class. POST-GRANT STUDENT FEEDBACK: "Although at first my classmates and I were skeptical about the idea of goat yoga and scooping horse manure, we were soon humbled when we learned of the background behind Purpose Farms. This unique farm provides goat yoga to kids from abusive households and gives them the chance to escape and clear their minds from things that might be troubling them back home. With the help of our community service work, the kids will be able to come to a clean farm and enjoy the presence of the beautiful animals, whom have been rescued from nearby locations. Thank you for your grant to provide us with this unique experience." ~ Sierra Sander, SHS Class of 2018

Grant Recipients - Kathy Herr, Tami Riglin, Mary Whirtley & Chris Yost // The objective of this grant is to provide students the opportunity to engage in Arts in Education. This experience will allow students to be immersed in the African culture. They will see costumes, music, ceremonies, habitats and other aspects of Africa. Additionally, this is an occasion for students to experience a performance that many may never otherwise get the chance to see.

Grant Recipient - Michael Caraccio // Guest Speaker Marion Blumenthal Lazan – Holocaust Survivor, Speaker and author of Four Perfect Pebbles Grades 7-12 on Thursday, May 11, 2017 An outstanding speaker, Marion Blumenthal Lazan has shared her moving first-hand account of the Blumenthal family’s life in Germany, from the events preceding Kristallnacht to imprisonment in concentration camps to liberation in April of 1945, with upwards of one million students and adults. Her Holocaust experiences and messages of respect and tolerance go beyond the facts and inspire audiences around the world. The praise she has received from event hosts is remarkable as she evokes life-changing responses time and time again.

Grant Recipient - Heather Buff // Performance at APT on May 19, 2017 at 10:30 a.m. The play is based on the story of the Mercury 13, a group of American women who underwent some of the same testing as the male astronauts who were selected by NASA and became known as the Mercury 7. Though the women largely passed the first phase of testing with flying colors, ultimately they were not part of NASA’s astronaut program, never flew in space and never had the opportunity to meet as a group. This play shares their story. We are hopeful that this opportunity will encourage our 5th graders, especially our girls, to look at the historical perspective of women in STEM and promote discussion about the role of women in history, especially in the world of engineering and technology.