The Bellevue Schools Foundation has awarded 97 grants to teachers in every school across the Bellevue School District to help provide learning beyond textbooks.

Examples of the $65,000 in grants made through the Enrichment & Innovation grants program include:

• Bringing the Philharmonic Woodwind Quintet to perform “Peter and the Wolf” for Ardmore Elementary students
• Helping build the Mandarin book collection at Bellevue’s new Jing Mei Elementary
• Guiding Newport Elementary third grade explorers to Eastside historic sites
• Motivating Lake Hills Elementary fifth graders to set their sights on college with a visit to the University of Washington
• Starting a garden at Bellevue Big Picture School for students to design their own mini-farms that incorporate “next generation science standards”
• Opening the world of nanotechnology to Newport High students with new ExoLab microscope cameras and field trips to UW and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
• Inspiring art students at the International School with master classes with artist and printmaker April Richardson

In addition, 83 other projects will be funded through the program.

New this year, TEALS grants will support projects that teach students computer programming skills and applications. These grants are made possible by Microsoft’s contributions to match the volunteer time employees spend teaching computer science in high school classrooms through the TEALS (Technology Education And Literacy in Schools) program.

The initial $9,500 in funding will support robotics clubs across the district, providing students with the opportunity to sharpen their science and engineering skills by building robots and competing in challenges with other schools across the country. Students at Tyee, Tillicum, and Highland middle schools also will have the opportunity once again to build and program working satellites, and eventually launch them tens of thousands of feet into the air.

“We hear from foundation donors how much they enjoy providing these types of experiences and opportunities for our students,” said Bellevue Schools Foundation Executive Director Roxanne Shepherd. “The breadth of projects for which funding was requested highlights the range of subjects Bellevue students explore as well as the innovative approaches our teachers undertake to inspire our students to learn.”

Founded in 1979, Bellevue Schools Foundation’s mission is to develop, promote, and fund the best possible learning opportunities for all students in Bellevue’s public schools.

Students work with colorful pieces of glass during a glass fusing workshop last year at Medina Elementary School. COURTESY PHOTO