This year’s grants will fund projects supportive of subjects across the curriculum and will benefit students and staff from all levels.  Eighteen grants have been awarded this year totaling $116,992.68

When she died in 2002, Helen Moore, a resident of Strasburg, Virginia, left her estate, which was valued at over 3 million dollars, to benefit the students of Shenandoah County Public Schools.   Each year, interest from the trust is awarded to teachers and teacher groups for special projects. 

There are two categories of Moore Grants. The Moore Educational Trust Instructional Grant funds classroom projects, summer learning camps, visiting artists and scholars and after school enrichment programs. The Moore Educational Trust Professional Development Grant funds teacher travel, teacher study, book studies, and enrichment workshops and seminars.

Projects funded for 2010:

Strasburg High School
• Bringing Science and Technology Together
This grant, submitted by science teachers Jamie Armentrout and Jonathan Dodd, will pay for the purchase of equipment for all of the science classrooms at SHS which will allow students to collect data both inside and outside of the classroom.  Using the probeware to collect data allows students to get feedback from the data collected almost immediately.  Six sets of lab equipment and six laptop computers will be purchased.
o Funded at $19,320.

Signal Knob Middle School
• Shenandoah Summer Strings – Joel Ross
For the third year the selection committee is supporting the proposal for a summer strings program which involves teachers and students from all of the high schools as well as Peter Muhlenberg and Signal Knob. This is a successful program which highlights the strings program in the county and allows this group of students to collaborate. 
o Funded for $3,500.

• Project:  Total Fitness – Suzanne Mathias, Rebecca Lambert, Trip Lamb
Two years ago a Moore Grant supported the construction of a fitness center at North Fork Middle School.  This grant supports the funding for a similar project at Signal Knob Middle School.  A storage room will be converted with the additions of resistance training and cardiovascular equipment.  Students and staff at Signal Knob will have access to the center.
o Funded at $24,000.

• IPOD Touch:  Building the 21st Century Literacy Classroom – Chanda Greco
This grant supports the purchase of IPOD Touches for classroom use.  As stated in the application, “Utilizing the countless educational applications that are available, free or for minimal cost, our students would engage in more authentic work and purposeful learning, problem solving, and critical thinking skills in all…courses.”
o Funded at $12,000.

• Context Text Set Library – Mary Beth Sharp
This grant would support the purchase of low reading level books in subjects related to the SOLs, especially in science and social studies.  A primary target for these materials would be the growing group of second language learners at Signal Knob who read below grade level but must master the content material.
o Funded for $2,400.

Central High School
• Reversing Readicide – Jessica Smith
The English department at Central High School will use this grant money for a combination instructional and professional development project. They seek to purchase the book Readicide  by Kelly Gallagher for each faculty member.  his book, which is described in the application as both disturbing and inspiring, describes readicide as the systematic killing of the love of reading.  With this project, the English department intends to work with the entire staff to reverse readicide at Central High School. They propose a school-wide Sustained Silent Reading time, a field trip to a bookstore for all 10th graders to buy a book, and professional conversations among the staff and with a consultant.
o Funded at $10,145.

• Central High School Rain Garden & Outdoor Classroom – Meredith Bauserman
With funding from this grant, students in AP Environmental Science, Geology and Honors Earth Science will research and design a rain garden for an area behind CHS.  Rain gardens collect run-off from rain and snow storms and holds it for up to four days.  When run-off is drained slowly and allowed to be absorbed by plants, erosion and pollution in nearby streams is reduced.  Students will also research the best plants for the project and agriculture students will construct picnic tables for the area. 
o Funded at $4,155.

Peter Muhlenberg Middle School
• Trout in the Classroom:  Connecting Students with their Watersheds
This grant will allow Jamie Nichols, life science teacher at PMMS, to bring a Trout in the Classroom project to the school.  All seventh graders will become stakeholders in successfully raising a Brook trout population within the classroom in 55 gallon freshwater tanks.  Students will raise these native species and then work with Trout Unlimited scientists to release them into our local watershed.  Once established, this program can be used for many years. 
o Funded for $2,875.50.

• Find Your Voice
PMMS teachers Liza Coffman and Jen Jones teach a class of young girls who, because of their life circumstances, are at risk for school failure and difficulties in the community.  They propose to have each girl read Speak, a story of a young girl who struggles to find her voice and reach out to her community, and then interview the author using Skype.  They will travel to Winchester to serve a hot lunch to the needy and listen to their stories.  They will study the etiquette of dining out before attending a dinner at a restaurant in Berryville.  Finally, each girl will write her own story and publish it using Tikatok, a website designed to publish hardback books. 
o Funded for $1,600.

• Keep Writing Moore – Donna Burton
Two years ago, the seventh grade team at PMMS was able to convert one classroom into a computer lab with the funds from a Moore Grant.  Since then, over 500 students have had the benefit of using online reading and writing tools that have sharpened their skills.  This grant is to support the cost of the educational software for two more years which will be used with all 7th and 8th graders.  Since receiving the first grant, PMMS has seen an improvement in their writing achievement, especially among the disadvantaged and students with disabilities.
o Funded for $8,360.

W.W. Robinson Elementary School

• North Fork of the Shenandoah River Exploration – Gayle Shaffer/Thad Hockman
This is a grant for a one-week enrichment environmental education class in the summer for students in grades 6-12.  There will be experiences in the North Fork of the Shenandoah River led by teachers with technical support from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and the Friends of the North Fork.  Students will also complete projects in the classroom as a part of this experience.
o Funded for $2,500.

Ashby Lee Elementary School

• Sharing the Love of Reading – Teresa Davis and Sandy Randolph
This grant supports the purchase of books which will be given to each preschool student to read at home with a parent.  For each book, activities will be provided for parents to use at home with the book.  The families will keep the books and begin to build a home library.
o Funded for $1,300.00.

North Fork Middle School

• Professional Development/A Visit from Kelly Gallagher, author of Readicide:  How Schools are Killing Reading and What You Can Do About It  - Donna Shafer
Although they were submitted separately and independently, this grant project can be implemented along with the Central High School literacy proposal.  Kelly Gallagher will visit Shenandoah County and provide a workshop to middle and high school teachers addressing the strategies in his book to promote literacy.
o Funded for $4,000.

• Using Education Apps with iPod Touches – Jennifer Martin
This project, like the one at Signal Knob, will provide a class set of iPods for student use.  There are over 10,000 education applications which can be downloaded for little or no cost on an iPod.  These tools are supported by our instructional technology department as an excellent learning device.
o Funded for $12,000.

• FALC Satellite Bags – Stephanie Wilson
Last year the Moore Educational Trust funded the construction of the Falcon Adventure Learning Center behind Central High School.  This project is a creative plan to expand the scope of this successful project. A bag will be created to be housed in each school which will contain tools for the low ropes courses that are part of the FALC.  Facilitators at each of the schools will be able to lead group activities right in their classrooms.  There is a trained facilitator at each school.
o Funded for $2,358.50

• Free Music Program – Wendy Whitford
For the third year the committee has supported the funding of the Free Music Program at North Fork which provides free supplemental music lessons to interested instrumental students.  This program brings high school and college students to work with students after school to improve their musical skills.  This funding allows all students to benefit from some individual tutoring in their instrument.
o Funded for $3,800.

• Learning is Fun:  Activities to Use with Your Students to Engage, Motivate, and Reinforce Concepts Learned in the Classroom
Sixth grade teacher Trey Loker has developed a series of kinesthetic games that he uses with his students and has shared with other middle school teachers.  This proposal would allow for the purchase of enough materials to allow the other teachers at North Fork to create these activities for themselves.
o Funded for $1,478.68

• Professional Development Grant – Shelby Kline
This professional development grant addresses the need for teachers to develop a better understanding of the impact of poverty on the learner.  In partially funding this grant, the committee is supporting the purchase of the book Under-Resourced Learners by Ruby Payne for each staff member.
o Funded for $1,200.

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