PASADENA, CA - The Pasadena Educational Foundation (PEF) presented $184,000 in grants to 160 Pasadena Unified Schools District (PUSD) teachers and principals at the annual PEF Teacher Grants reception on Tuesday, Dec. 6, at the Altadena Town & Country Club. Thanks to support from the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association, the College Football Playoff (CFP) Foundation, and the generous support of the community, for the first time in the more than 40 years of the Teacher Grants program, PEF funded every PUSD school. The grants benefit thousands of students in Altadena, Pasadena, and Sierra Madre.
Science labs, iPads for mobile journalism, musical instruments, materials for a STOMP-style musical, expanded libraries, wireless language learning stations, outdoor classrooms with edible gardens and aquaponics, are just a few of the diverse and vibrant educational projects that the 2016 PEF Teacher Grants are supporting.
"The goal of the PEF Teacher Grant Program is to promote the development of educational activities that will improve and enhance student achievement," said PEF Executive Director, Patrick Conyers. "This year, like every year, I am awed by the creativity and passion that our district's teachers and principals share in these proposals."
In addition to grants directly to teachers, PEF awarded School-wide Project Grants, and three special awards. School-wide Project Grants are for larger focused projects and included funding for an outdoor classroom for learning water conservation, a new athletic weight room, and resources to build supercomputers to create a virtual reality lab. Three special awards were also given: the Jarratt Brunson Memorial Award for Literacy honoring one of the founders of PEF responsible for initiating the Teacher Grant Program; the Kathy Onoye Principal's Leadership Award given in honor of the former PUSD Executive Director of Elementary Education; and the Calvin Hunt Arts Award, that promotes and supports dedicated teachers enhancing arts education in PUSD.
"The CFP Foundation is delighted to help make these educational projects possible through the Extra Yard for Teachers initiative," said Britton Banowsky, Executive Director of the College Football Playoff Foundation. "We want to inspire and uplift teachers in everything we do. Knowing that these classroom needs will be met allows the teachers to do what they do so well - open new worlds of learning to young minds."
Since its inception in 2013, the CFP Foundation has funded more than $2.5 million in direct classroom needs through the Extra Yard for Teachers platform in CFP host cities and in communities designated by its conference partners. CFP licensed products have generated more than $7.5 million in direct support of the CFP Foundation and its programming nationally. Visit www.cfp-foundation.org to learn more about the CFP Foundation and Extra Yard for Teachers.
"The impact that educators have on children and families is without comparison," said William B. Flinn, Executive Director/CEO of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association. "It makes a lasting impression that stays with someone for a lifetime. The Tournament of Roses, through our Parade and Game, aims to provide a similar experience. This is the reason we are so excited to be a part of this partnership with PEF and the CFP Foundation to support our teachers who support so many people throughout their careers."
PEF Teacher Grants and School-wide Project Grants help bring more creativity, innovation, and inspiration into our PUSD classrooms by providing the resources needed to help our teachers and principals take their creative projects from idea to reality and enhance the classroom experience for their students.
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