At the Needham School Committee meeting on November 26, the Needham Education Foundation (NEF) announced the recipients of five grants totaling $30,713 in its fall grant cycle.
Awarded grants include:
Middle School Humanities Teachers Attend National Conferences
Fifteen High Rock and Pollard Middle School ELA and Social Studies teachers will attend their respective national conferences, National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and National Council for Social Studies (NCSS). It will be the first time that ELA or social studies teachers from all three grade levels attend a conference together, allowing them to engage in ongoing professional conversations about their learning and implementation in their classrooms.
—Awarded to Liz Welburn, ELA Chair, Grades 6-8 and Brooke Kessel, Social Studies Department Chair Grades K-8
Teen Mental Health First Aid Instructor Training
Teen Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) instructor training will be provided to six Health and Wellness teachers at High Rock, Pollard, and Needham High School. By equipping these educators with the skills to identify and assist students experiencing mental health challenges, the aim is to foster a more supportive school environment. MHFA is an evidence-based curriculum that teaches teens how to support a friend or peer struggling with mental health issues.
–Awarded to Denise Domnarski, K-12 Director of Physical Education, Health and Wellness and Sara Shine, Director Needham Youth and Family Services
What Is Normal Anyway?: A (Stigma-Obliterating) Disability Film Series
Four evenings of disability education will be funded to benefit the Needham community, with each evening including a documentary screening followed by a panel discussion taking the topics raised in the films and exploring how they affect or influence the experiences of youth in Needham, where over 1,000 students, or one in five, receive special education services in the schools.
–Awarded to Jenn Scheck-Kahn, Parent; Sasha Yampolsky, Parent; Meera Sunder, Parent; Andy Wizer, Community Member; and Diane Simmons, Director of Strategic Planning and Community Engagement
Creative Dance Residency: Giraffes Can’t Dance
A creative dance residency for the kindergarten students at Eliot Elementary School will explore social emotional learning concepts through literacy, movement, and music. Students read the book Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae and Guy Parker-Rees and learn about Gerald, a giraffe who struggles with confidence, and a community that works to learn acceptance while dancing together in the jungle.
– Awarded to Jo-Anne Bagley, Kindergarten Teacher and Valerie Maio, Dance4All Teaching Artist
Empowering Student Voices: A Technology Innovation Space
A dedicated Technology Innovation Space will be created at Needham High School to foster student creativity, collaboration, and technological proficiency. Grant funds will be used to purchase high-quality podcasting equipment, including microphones, mixers, headphones, stands, and sound-dampening equipment to cultivate students’ digital literacy skills, inspire innovative thinking, and promote authentic learning experiences, all while building skills in using professional technology equipment.
– Awarded to Sam Bookston, Technology Integration Specialist and Joshua Yankell, Technology Integration Specialist, Needham High School