Lori Luyckx, Guilford Lakes, was awarded a grant to purchase classroom furniture that accommodates students’ individual preferences for their workspaces. Options like wobble chairs, standing desks, scoop rockers and wedge cushions may facilitate the learning process. Ms. Luyckx’s classroom will serve as a pilot program for the entire district, with students engaging in regular reflection on the impact of their seating choices on their learning and classroom observation by other professionals. Learn more

Rob Macmillen and Pamela Dear, Baldwin Middle School, The success of Baldwin’s Imagination Station, a collection of physical and virtual tools and resources for inventing and tinkering funded by a prior GFFE grant, inspired Mathematics teacher Rob Macmillen and Library and Media Specialist Pamela Dear to apply for a GFFE grant to add a robotics component to students’ learning at Baldwin. The grant will be used to purchase four LEGO Robotics kits.

Nicholas Ripa, Guilford High School, was awarded a grant to purchase GoPro drones for Guilford High School TV Production classes. Students who previously learned about aerial cinematography only in theory will now be able to participate in practical laboratory activities using the drones.

Dennis Culliton, Social Studies teacher at Adams Middle School, was awarded a grant to help launch an ambitious interdisciplinary project to discover and share the stories of enslaved people in Guilford. Eighth grade students will research the histories of local enslaved people using secondary sources and primary sources such as property records, wills, and census documents. The students will then write the previously unknown stories, which will be published in booklets and posted on the project website. Inspired by the Stolpersteine project in Europe, in which commemorative plaques are installed on the pavement in front of the last homes of victims of the Holocaust, stones bearing small plaques with information about enslaved persons will be created and installed in relevant areas of Guilford. An upcoming talk on slavery in Guilford and a public forum will launch the Witness Stones project, which will be carried out in partnership with the Guilford Preservation Alliance.

​

Sheryl Shyloski, Guilford Lakes School, was awarded a grant to create The Toy Library.  This program is designed to improve the lives of children with and without special needs. The Toy Library is intended to provide toys to help children learn, develop and thrive and toys will be made available to check out at the Guilford Free Library and the Guilford Lakes School.

Emily Boisvert, Melissa Jones Elementary School,  was awarded a grant to expand a “Battle of the Books” program. The program will promote reading of a variety of genres among third and fourth graders. Students will develop book trailer presentations to showcase an expanded collection of books to their peers.