TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) – The Vigo County Education Foundation awarded $38,500 to schools across the county Friday during a ‘Business and Bagels’ celebration at Otter Creek Middle School.
20 schools within the Vigo County School Corporation received between $1,000 and $3,000 a piece, with the money going toward programs that will impact the entire student body.
“We have a school-wide math initiative at Hoosier Prairie Elementary, school-wide musicals at Terre Town Elementary and Ouabache Elementary. Other schools are having maker spaces in their high schools so the students can use 3D technology, create, tinker, collaborate,” Jane Nichols, Executive Director for VCEF, said.
Each school was awarded the grant money at the event Friday morning, and community members were able to see how schools are improving throughout the county.
A representative from each school also had the chance to share which projects the money will be going toward at their school.
“We have them earn punches on punch cards and once they earn so many punches on the punch card, they get prizes to choose from. And usually, they’re just simple prizes, so we’re looking at getting bigger things so that’s why I wrote the grant, so the Education Foundation could possibly help us get bigger items so that at the end of each grading period, the children, all of their punch cards go into a bin, and then we’ll draw winners for bigger items,” Janel Bonomo, Principal of Fayette Elementary, said.
Other projects throughout the schools ranged from 3D printers to good attendance incentives, to sensory rooms.
Following the event, a tour was given by the Principal of Otter Creek Middle School to show its recently finished renovation project.
The project included a new gym, new music space, and a renovated music wing, and a new and improved cafeteria.
Otter Creek was also able to add more classroom space and renovate bathrooms and locker rooms.
