Madison Street Festival: More than a fun day, MSF’s mission helps fund several school projects

The Madison Street Festival will be held this Saturday, Oct. 5, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown Madison. For more information, check out www.madisonstreetfestival.org.

MADISON – The Madison Street Festival (MSF) is a wonderful family-fun, but it also helps support the community in many amazing ways. Grants from funds raised through the festival spread long-lasting effects to people across the community.

Each year, the MSF awards community grants to groups or organizations that provide educational opportunities and increase/support literacy.

MSF President Crytal McBrayer said by providing community grants to deserving groups or organizations, it is the intent of the MSF to support students of all ages and abilities as they seek access to higher education or continuing education programs.

“Madison Street Festival’s mission as a 501(c)3 organization is to support students of all ages and abilities through grants. Last year’s grant cycle was the biggest we’ve experienced,” McBrayer said. “Giving $20,000 in grants to 35 educational programs is adding to the legacy of MSF.”

“Thank you for what all grant recipients do to enrich students’ lives and enhance the educational experience for people of all ages and abilities. We’re excited this year for what it will bring in the way of another great sponsorship drive, festival and successful grant cycle,” McBrayer said.

For more information about the grants and how to apply, go to www.madisonstreetfestival.org/ grantsapplication. Here is a recap of the grant recipients from last year: For the “Pre-Kindergarten STEM Explorations” grant, Kawanna Gardner purchased materials to create different opportunities for students to learn during Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics or STEM challenges.

At Columbia Elementary School, the “Lights, Camera, READ!” grant by Alyson Durrett bought books, supplies and reading promotions to support “Read Across America Week.”

For Columbia Science Club, the “Generation Genius” grant applied to a one-year subscription for experiments and DIY activities to promote students’ love of exploration, Misty Farmer said. Also at Columbia, Thuan ‘Sage’ Murine’s “Deconstructing Disability with Adaptive Art Tools” grant added supplies for structured learning classes in art for students with special needs. For the English Learners program, “Moving and Grooving in Reading with Indi Bots” by Michael Kelley used classroom robots for reading fundamentals in an engaging way. With the “Uniting Cultures, One Page at a Time” grant, Stephanie Nguyen bought bilingual books for grades 1-5.

Rachael Rohan used equipment for students with special needs for relaxation and calming, thanks to the “Classroom Sensory Swing” grant. With the “STEM Lab -Empowering All Students Through Integrated Learning” grant, Julie Vandiver’s class have Sphero indis that inspires imaginative, playbased learning for basics of coding and computational thinking.

Horizon Elementary School’s gifted students have a small library from the “Novel Guides for Gifted Students” grant by Teresa Schmidt. Jessica Schmauch’s “Challenge Novel Studies” grant supplied four copies of novels for grades 3-5 for language arts’ advanced learning.

For Horizon’s garden, Jessica Schmauch’s grant bought mulching for a pollinator area, along with plants and containers for sensory plantings that students in special education will tend. Schmauch’s other grant, “FIRST LEGO Robotics,” supported the 2023-2024 competition season. Horizon’s Greenpower team, “RESTART,” will benefit from Megan Gowan’s grant for fourth and fifth-grade students.

At Madison Elementary School, Emily McCluskey bought Sphero: Indi for kindergarten teachers as a reading tool and engagement element, thanks to “Sphero Indi: Where Coding and Reading Collide.” Students benefited from board games that nurture a dynamic, inclusive learning environment, thanks to Christie Fay’s “Special Education” grant.

Midtown Elementary School’s second grade students have take-home books for winter and summer breaks from Bria Waller’s “Book Pantry” grant. The “First-Grade Reading Rocks” grant by Sydnie Hill will bought literature-rich books based on the seasons and holidays. For Midtown’s Music Room, Orff instruments, like the xylophone and glockenspiel, gave more immersive study from “Building a Dream Music Room” by Emma Moreton.

For Discovery Middle School, the “Multilingual Classroom Library” grant by Brittany Cox catered to students’ diverse linguistic backgrounds with books in Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Chinese and others. Creative writing students can access poetry to promote different kinds of art/writing from the “Project Poetry” grant by Candace Rose.

The “Turning Tables” grant from Sara Baragona brought ThinkLive! turntables with focus on math, science and art into Makerspace and STEM classes.

During Space Camp Week, students at Discovery built rocket launchers with dynamics of jet and water propulsion from funding by Monique Haselden’s “Let’s Blast Off !” “Shooting for the Stars – An Intro to Rocketry” by Melissa Marowski funded the “Flight and Space” course to develop scientific literacy.

For Journey Middle School, the “Inaugural Launch of Greenpower Racing Team” grant by Ashley Bowden funded this new group. Chelsea Young wrote the grant, “Library Media Center Collection Development: Digital Formats,” to buy audiobooks and e-books.

Bob Jones High School’s yearbook staff received supplies to expand event coverage and increased learning options, thanks to Casey Walker’s grant. Michelle Mitchell submitted “Math Modeling Classes – Financial Literacy” to fund the “Personal Finance” program that explains loans, credit cards, stock market principles, taxes and savings. Students participating as Reading Buddies received books and materials from Meagan Fleenor’s grant.

At James Clemens High School, Katy Sparks submitted “SPED Dept. Achieve3000 – Building Reading and Math Proficiency” to buy Achieve3000 licenses to accelerate learning for 125 students. Collaborative teachers accessed professional development.