Past Grant Recipients
2023-2024
Since 1983, WPSF has funded over $4 million in staff and teacher grants. With school budgets under continual pressure, WPSF's grants are increasingly important to maintaining the tradition of excellence in Wayland classrooms.
The Children’s Way
ANTI-RACIST PLAY IN PRESCHOOL
Courtney Tuttle
This grant funds multicultural and multi-ethic play materials for each of the five TCW classrooms to ensure every student feels represented in their daily school experiences and every child is building both self and social awareness. Diverse art center materials include skin tone paints and multicultural playdough packs. Dramatic play materials include multicultural baby doll sets and multicultural cooking sets. Block/STEM materials include diverse wooden people blocks and “All Kinds of Friends” builders as well as a “Children of the World” floor puzzle and human body puzzles.
All Schools
DIGITAL MAGAZINES VIA SORA
Sara Ravid, Melissa Harvey, Bethann Monahan
This grant funds a pilot digital magazine subscription for curricular use and independent pleasure reading for students K-12. Teachers can directly integrate specific articles into lessons to provide students with the most current information, including charts, images and infographics.
All Elementary Schools
5TH GRADE HEALTH TEACHER
Scott Parseghian, Emily Charton, Brian Jones, Tricia O’Reilly
This grant funds .4 staff for a 5th grade health education program in our three elementary schools. The curriculum will include: healthy relationships, body image, healthy eating and health/wellness safety related to technology.
GEODES DECODABLE LITERACY TOOLS
Sherry Grace, Karyn Saxon
Geodes decodable books support the need for rich and connected text and will provide decodable texts to early readers. The Geodes decodable books align with the WPS core classroom instruction, Fundations.
Claypit Hill Elementary
CLAYPIT COMMUNICATION STATIONS
Katherine Hochberger, Mary Ellen Heilman, Meridith Heckler
This grant funds one large post mount communication board for each of the two Claypit Hill playgrounds. The boards are visual representations of images and text that help close the communication gap between students who are non-speaking, or those with limited verbal skills, and their teachers and peers. The boards reflect words or ideas that are relevant to their specific locations and assist students who want to interact with their teachers or peers but have difficulty doing so.
Loker Elementary
UKELELES FOR LOKER MUSIC CLASSES
Kimberley Pisklo
This grant provides funding for the purchase of 25 Makala ukuleles, ukulele strings, and hanging rack. Third grade students will learn how to use the ukulele (replaces the recorder) in their general music classes. Third, fourth and fifth grade students who do not participate in the strings or band program, and instead participate in the Music Workshop class, will receive ukulele instruction. Learning chords and basic melodies and gaining knowledge in how to read music will encourage lifelong music making.
WHAT’S THE WEATHER
Jennifer Mohr, Kathleen Germaine, Ilana Wyner, Brian Jones
From seasonal weather patterns to climate change and everything in between, it is important that everyone be prepared. A great first step on that path is acquiring a solid foundation in the science of weather. The “What’s the Weather?” project will provide the Loker community with local, accurate, weather data. Students and teachers will learn how to measure wind, read a rain gauge and even help make the decision on outdoor or indoor recess in the colder months.
Happy Hollow Elementary
FOSTERING A SENSE OF COMMNITY AT HAPPY HOLLOW
Deb Dowd, Heather Gimenez, JoAnn Kline, Gretchen McAuley, Beth Santomenna
This grant funds inspirational posters, street signs and “welcome bags” at Happy Hollow School. Inspirational posters and street signs will serve as visual reminders of the school’s core values and will reflect diversity, acceptance and inclusion.
Wayland Middle School
MANY STORIES MATTER
Emily Anderson, Carrie Dirmeikis, Meeghan Peirce
This grant, written by the 8th grade English teachers, funds a new literature circle curriculum related to themes of diversity, identity and social justice. The chosen books are the avenue to explicitly teach important skills that will enhance students' abilities to deepen their discussions around the critical themes in the books.
CROSSING CULTURAL BOUNDARIES: THE IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE
Luann Duesterberg, Kristen Offord, Daniel Davila-Fernandez, Dylan Merry, Dalia Stewart, Roxanne Brown
The 7th grade English and social studies departments have created curriculum around the theme of “crossing cultural boundaries.” This grant provides all 7th grade students with the opportunity to read about and engage with people who have had to cross cultural boundaries and to consider their successes and their challenges.
SEVENTH GRADE OPEN AREA
Meghan Maines
This grant funds modular furniture to define the 7th grade open area as an informal learning space. Providing a flexibly designed space with modular furniture will create an opportunity for students to engage in collaborative work outside the classroom and provide teachers afunctional flex space to utilize with students.
Wayland High School
LIFT EVERY VOICE & SING!
Joseph Oneschuk, Jr.
This grant commissioned the creation of the first ever published school Jazz band arrangement of our Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” The premiere performances took place at the WHS 2023 graduation ceremony and the spring WHS band & jazz concert.
WHS COMPOSTING INITIATIVE
WHS Green Team, Sara Snow, Amy McCormack, Ciaran Murphy
This grant aims to bring WHS forward into a greener future by composting lunchroom waste and educating students about composting as a way to reduce waste at school and at home.
TAKING WSPN TO NEW LEVELS!
Mary Barber, Brian Keaney
This grant funds a new fast-action, cinematic grade camera and a drone for the Wayland Student Press Network (WSPN)
FINE ARTS PRINTER
Amy O’Connell, Veronique Latimer
This grant funds a large format photo printer for the joint Visual Arts department that will be used to print art show posters and designs for musical productions, concerts and events.
RESEARCH & DESIGN COALITION
Jennifer McGillis, Hayes Hart-Thompson, Fred Lehmann, Mary Barber
This grant expands on a previous WPSF grant that funded the Wayland Exploration Lab for Design (WELD). It funds additional materials, tools, and spaces for students to design and develop prototypes and to create connection between the business lab, WELD and the library.