Madison Street Festival grants reach $20K for 35 school projects

MADISON – After the event ends, Madison Street Festival continues to benefit the community with grants for educational enhancements.

The 2023 festival yielded $20,000 in grants to 35 educational programs and “adds to the legacy of Madison Street Festival’s mission as a 501(c)3 organization to support students of all ages and abilities through grants,” MSF President Crytal McBrayer said.

For pre-kindergarten:

* “STEM Explorations” — Materials for sessions in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Submitted by Kawanna Gardner.

For Columbia Elementary School:

* “Lights, Camera, READ!” — Books and supplies for “Read Across America Week.” Alyson Durrett.

* “Generation Genius” — One-year subscription for experiments by Columbia Science Club. Misty Farmer.

* “Deconstructing Disability with Adaptive Art Tools” — Materials for structured learning classes for students with special needs. Thuan ‘Sage’ Murine.

* “Moving and Grooving in Reading with Indi Bots” — Classroom robots for English Learners to learn reading fundamentals. Michael Kelley.

* “Uniting Cultures, One Page at a Time” — Bilingual books for grades 1-5. Stephanie Nguyen.

* “Classroom Sensory Swing” — Equipment to calm students with special needs. Rachael Rohan.

* “STEM Lab -Empowering all Students Through Integrated Learning” — Sphero indis to inspire imaginative learning for coding. Julie Vandiver.

For Horizon Elementary School:

* “Novel Guides for Gifted Students” – Small library for gifted students. Teresa Schmidt. * “Challenge Novel Studies” – Four copies of novels for language arts’ advanced learning in grades 3-5. Jessica Schmauch.

* “Horizon Garden” — Mulching for pollinator area and sensory plantings that students in special education will tend. Jessica Schmauch.

* “FIRST LEGO Robotics” — Support for 2023-2024 competition season. Jessica Schmauch.

* “RESTART” — Horizon’s Greenpower team with fourth- and fifth-grade students. Megan Gowan.

For Madison Elementary School:

* “Sphero Indi: Where Coding and Reading Collide” — Sphero: Indi to kindergarten teachers for reading engagement. Emily McCluskey.

* “Special Education” — Board games nurturing dynamic, inclusive learning. Christie Fay.

For Madison Cross Roads in Madison County Schools:

* “ACE Program – Building Engineering Skills Through Keva Planks” — Keva Maple Planks for ACE students’ architecture unit. Meaghan Hughes-Davis.

For Midtown Elementary School:

* “Book Pantry” — Take-home books for second-graders during winter and summer breaks. Bria Waller.

* “First-Grade Reading Rocks” — Literature-rich books based on the seasons and holidays. Sydnie Hill.

* “Building a Dream Music Room” — Orff instruments, like xylophone and glockenspiel, for immersive study in Midtown’s Music Room. Emma Moreton.

For Discovery Middle School:

* “Multilingual Classroom Library” — Books in Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Chinese and others catering to students’ diverse linguistic backgrounds. Brittany Cox.

* “Project Poetry” — Poetry to promote varieties of art/writing by creative writing students. Candace Rose.

* “Turning Tables” — ThinkLive! turntables with focus on math, science and art in Makerspace and STEM classes. Sara Baragona.

* “Let’s Blast Off!” – Materials to build rocket launchers with dynamics of jet and water propulsion during Space Camp Week. Monique Haselden.

* “Shooting for the Stars – An Intro to Rocketry” – Course in “Flight and Space” to develop scientific literacy. Melissa Marowski.

For Journey Middle School:

* “Inaugural Launch of Greenpower Racing Team” – Funding to start a racing team at the new school. Ashley Bowden.

* “Library Media Center Collection Development: Digital Formats” — Audiobooks and e-books for multiple learning styles. Chelsea Young.

For Bob Jones High School:

* “BJHS Yearbook Program” — Supplies to expand event coverage and learning options for yearbook staff. Casey Walker.

* “Math Modeling Classes – Financial Literacy” — “Personal Finance” program that explains loans, credit cards, stock market, taxes and savings. Michelle Mitchell.

* “Teaching Academy – Reading Buddies” – Books, materials and supplies for Teaching Academy students serving as Reading Buddies. Meagan Fleenor.

For James Clemens High School:

* “SPED Department Achieve3000 – Building Reading and Math Proficiency” — Licenses to accelerate learning for 125 students and collaborative teachers. Katy Sparks.

Local organizations also received grant funding:

* Cure Diabetes Inc., “Education in Motion” – Awareness to 1,000 people minimum about community events. Juliana Draper.

* Girls on the Run, North Alabama, “Girls Have Power Summer Camp” – Critical life skills to campers in grades 3-5 at Camp GOTR. Laren Lee.

* Huntsville Community Drumline, “Free Music and Percussion Instruction for All” –Curriculum-based, tuition-free music education. Angela Walker.

* Madison City Schools, “Throat Scopes for SLPs” – Speech evaluation for all grades during Madison City Schools’ assessments. Stacey Roy.

* Madison Renaissance Girls (FLL Team), “Driving Interest in STEAM” – LEGO Education SPIKE Prime kit to program simultaneously. Amber Merrill.