Armed with giant checks and filled with excitement, Temple Education Foundation Board members brought smiles to the faces of dozens of Temple Independent School District teachers on Monday morning.
The annual TEF Bounty Bus was on patrol, awarding a record $55,224.10 in Innovative Teaching Grants to teachers around the district.
The day began with a very special presentation at the TEF office. With TEF board members and major donors on hand, Temple ISD Superintendent Dr. Robin Battershell presented the “Superintendent’s Award for Creativity” to a pair of teachers from Bonham Middle School.
Lynnsay Macey and Erin Lewis received $3,023.98 for their flipped classroom project. In this innovative process, teachers record their lessons and students watch them at home, and then work on their “homework” in class.
Also at the TEF office, the Temple High School Band received $9,537.91 for their grant entitled “Modernizing Marching Percussion”. Head Band Director Bob Medina along with assistant directors Brent Mathesen and Benjamin Houghton excitedly accepted the check, and will use the grant to purchase innovative electronic equipment to take the band to a higher level of precision.
The third special presentation involved Temple ISD Swimming. Athletic Director Mike Spradlin accepted a check for $6,643 for a dry land swim trainer. Used largely by college swim teams, this trainer will help Temple students in middle and high school learn proper swimming techniques.
Then, Dr. Battershell accepted a check for the entire $55,224.10 and the Bounty Bus teams hit the road, presenting 15 additional grants on nine campuses.
It’s a surprise to the teachers, more than a month in the making. They turned in their grants earlier this fall. The TEF committee selected some winners simply from the application. The rest were called in front of the committee, with 10 minutes to convince the judges they deserved the grant.
True to its name, the committee looked for grants that would bring innovative teaching into Temple ISD.
The Temple Education Foundation raises money over the course of the year through a number of fundraising efforts, including the TEF Distinguished Alumni Award event, which this year featured a dinner and interview with 1965 Dunbar High School graduate and football legend Joe Greene. That event alone raised more than $100,000.
If you’d like to support the Temple Education Foundation’s efforts to support our teachers and students, find out more information at www.templeeducationfoundation.org