TEMECULA EDUCATION FOUNDATION AWARDS GRANTS TO 62 TVUSD EDUCATORS

TEMECULA, CA – October 21, 2015 –  At the October 20 Temecula Valley Unified School District (TVUSD) Governing Board Meeting, the Temecula Education Foundation (TEF) presented 62 educators in the Temecula district with funds to support enrichment programs benefitting students at 23 sites. Funded applications were limited to $500 each; grants awarded totaled over $26,000. Since 2011, TVFEE has awarded over $100,000 to Temecula educators for classroom enrichment.

Curriculum support grants for enrichment activities focusing on visual arts, performing arts, and sciences were available to educators in all TVUSD schools. Grant applications were due October 1. Per TEF guidelines, monies must support curriculum for students in the current school year and must be spent by January 15, 2016.

Speaking on behalf of the district foundation, TEF Vice President Jeff McNurlan congratulated teachers and principals. “We are proud to support educators whose passion and creativity make a difference in the classroom. This is the fifth year our foundation has been able to fund grants. We wish we could fund all requests. Unfortunately, our dollars are limited, and we had to focus on those applications we felt were within the scope of this year’s application and which impacted the largest number of students.

“Our mission is to enhance and improve learning opportunities for students in the TVUSD. We’ve come a long way in five years, and we hope to continue to grow our programs every year,” he added.

“Community events – like the TEF-sponsored Taste of Temecula Valley and summer school enrichment classes, as well as financial support from the Great Oak High School Spirit Run from the Arts and the Temecula Valley Art League – enable us to support our teachers and enhance the curriculum for students. We thank the community for its ongoing support,” he said.

            Examples of the types of visual and performing arts and science grants funded include:

• Easels/painting supplies for French Valley Elementary
• Online class/earth science and human body sets for LaVorgna Elementary
• NASA videoconference and explore/engineer/experiment sessions for Paloma Elementary
• Bass drum for Vail Ranch Middle School  
• Weather balloon/analytics lab for Temecula Middle School
• Microphones for science/theater productions at Jackson Elementary
• Recording device for music classes at Great Oak High School
• Lighting board for stage at Nicholas Valley Elementary
• Cymbals for Chaparral High School
• Watercolor pencils/paper for Temecula Luiseno Elementary
• Owl pellets and dissection tools for Temecula Elementary

 

Among those grant recipients recognized were:  

• BARNETT ELEMENTARY:  Shandra Beer, Anita Laehy, Erin Nielsen
• BELLA VISTA MIDDLE:  Robin Hughes
• CROWNE HILL ELEMENTARY:  Leanna Bush, Carolyn Davis, Susana McNitt, Julie Olen, Sherri Plaxco, Shana Reed, Michele Stacy
• CHAPARRAL HIGH SCHOOL:  Ron Carey, Kristen Olko, Linda Teahen, Alan Underwood
• DAY MIDDLE:  Allison Cooper, Lauren Davis, Kent Gerow
• FRENCH VALLEY ELEMENTARY:  Georgia Allen, Kari Carlson, Kristen Irvin
• GARDNER MIDDLE:  Joanie Wolkon
• GREAT OAK HIGH SCHOOL:  Mark Farrin, Jeff MacLean, Marco Magallanes, Sang Park, Lora Sanders, Rachel Williams
• JACKSON ELEMENTARY:  Kristen Cornellison, Victoria Moore, Melia Pommier
• LAVORGNA ELEMENTARY:  Darlene Dormanen, Rosalinda Jaimes
• MARGARITA MIDDLE:  Olivia Flores
• NICHOLAS VALLEY:  Judy Tang, Michelle Voye
• PALOMA ELEMENTARY:  Mike Cruz, Kristen Krohnfeldt, Kathleen Plunkett, Karen Vogt
• PAUBA VALLEY ELEMENTARY:  Diana Capehart, Laura Drlik
• RANCHO ELEMENTARY:  Michelle Dolias
• RED HAWK ELEMENTARY:  Elizabeth Tarry, Shelby Walton
• TEMECULA ELEMENTARY:  Kathy Fink, Nancy Reza
• TEMECULA LUISENO:  Ariana Kraft, Jennifer Stanard, Elaine Whaley
• TEMECULA MIDDLE:  Ivan Aviles, Stephanie Hunter, Pauline Nelson, Alisha Vandervoort
• TONY TOBIN ELEMENTARY:  Sharon Constantino, Neisha McNamera
• VINTAGE HILLS ELEMENTARY:  Renee Mills-Vacco, David York
• VAIL RANCH MIDDLE:  Randall Dulaney, Kelly Maxey, Colby Stromberg; Connie Wathern-Dominguez

About TEF & Taste of Temecula Valley (TOTV)

 

In addition to operating fee-based summer school enrichment classes for the past five years, TEF also hosts the Taste of Temecula Valley (TOTV), which is scheduled for its sixth year,  April 29-30, 2016. TOTV brings together dozens of area restaurants, wineries, and breweries in front of City Hall in Old Town Temecula to raise funds that support the foundation’s mission to enhance and improve learning opportunities for students in Grades K-12 in the Temecula Valley Unified School District.

TEF will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony to recognize the work of the foundation on Tuesday, November 3, at 11 AM on the campus of Sparkman Alternative Education Center, 32225 Pio Pico Road, Temecula. The event is open to the public.