The Nebo Education Foundation is composed of 20 volunteer board members who live in cities serviced by Nebo School District. Board members meet each month to review and award grant requests, consider fund-raising avenues and other items that advance the educational opportunities for Nebo School District students. Many of the donations received are for selected projects, yet a substantial amount is available for the greatest need. Greatest need monies are considered for grants submitted by area schools.
"The Nebo Education Foundation couldn't fund these grants without the tremendous support we receive from the Green Fever golf tournament, business partners, and individual donors. Thank you for the generosity of our community. The students in Nebo District have a more enhanced education than they would otherwise receive. We are grateful for all the good we see happening as a result of all those who support the Nebo Education Foundation," said executive director Lana Hiskey.
Congratulations to the following teachers that continue to inspire the minds of students.
Springville High – Darwin Deming
Darwin Deming, science teacher at Springville High, said, “I am incredibly excited to have received the grant funds to purchase the inflatable planetarium. The inflatable planetarium allows for students to get a 3D immersive experience looking at the night sky. Instead of trying to make sense of a 3D environment on a 2D projector screen, this will allow them to look all around them in the cardinal directions to see what the sky would look like from a realistic perspective. It allows the opportunity to look at the location of stars and constellations relative to each other and their placement in the sky. It will illustrate how they appear to move and change their position as the earth rotates. It will augment understanding of how the path and noon angle of the sun changes throughout the year as Earth moves in its orbit and affects the seasons. Additionally, there are astronomy videos that have been designed for planetary video presentations which will again immerse the students in 3D video viewing through space rather than a 2D projector screen. There are also oceanography videos (which I will start teaching for the 2024-2025 school year) that will submerge students through an underwater environment as if they were in a submarine. It is hard to express in words my inner giddiness about what this will do for my science classes and how it will excite the students. What's more is that when I am not using this resource, I can reach out to other science teachers in the district and allow them to borrow it so more students can benefit from such a neat learning experience. My deepest gratitude to the Nebo Education Foundation for supporting this educational resource!”
Santaquin Elementary – Jayne Barrus
“Thank you so much for the Nebo Education Foundation grant! I am super excited to be able to teach my special education students the proper way to store and care for the Chromebooks in my classroom. In the past, I have been keeping Chromebooks in a slotted bookshelf. The cords are strung around the back of the bookcase to be plugged in. I taped the chargers to the top of the bookcase to plug in the computers. Often, the tape breaks and the cords fall behind the bookcase, which makes them inaccessible and tangled, so not all the chromebooks are able to be charged at the same time. Having the Chromebook cart will alleviate that problem. All cords will be neatly stored and easily accessible. This will also help me to reinforce the expectations in the general education classroom for computer care. Again, thank you so much for this grant!” exclaimed Jayne Barrus, special education teacher at Santaquin Elementary.
East Meadows Elementary – Katelyn Finch
Katelyn Finch, a special education teacher at East Meadows Elementary, said,
“Thank you for the great news! I am so excited to have this program in my special education classroom. Additional resources to use for students who are struggling to make progress is always beneficial. I want to help my students make as much growth as possible. Thank you!!!”
Springville Junior – Andrea Hadlock
“I will be using the graphing calculators to help teach the concepts in Secondary Math 1 Honors. It’s important to me to teach students to use the technology available to them. These calculators are also ACT approved, and I want to teach kids how to use them, so they are comfortable with the calculators before they take the ACT. I took some time off from teaching to raise my kids. But before that, I taught classes to teachers on how to use these calculators. We can extend so many concepts by using technology, rather than getting bogged down by math. Without this grant, I wouldn’t be able to afford a classroom set of graphing calculators and the ability they provide to extend my students' thinking! Thank you so much Nebo Education Foundation!” exclaimed Andrea Hadlock, a math teacher at Springville Junior.
Wilson Elementary – Jordan Johnson
Jordan Johnson, third-grade teacher at Wilson Elementary, said, “I will be using the funds I receive to purchase books for my classroom. I will use the books to teach a variety of skills such as comprehension, themes, genres, culture, social-emotional skills, author's purpose, point of view, multiple perspectives, parables, etc. I truly appreciate the Nebo Education Foundation's help in funding these books. I moved schools this year and unfortunately had to leave a lot of my books behind, so I am excited to be able to purchase these!”
Spanish Oaks Elementary – Heidi Dimmick
“In third grade, students transition from learning to read using their phonics skills to reading to learn focusing on comprehension. Our core states that students need to be able to reference the text in order to answer questions about their reading. With the money we received from our grant, we will be able to buy novels to be able to use them for our novel studies. It will help with our students’ comprehension skills and allow us to have better discussions. I appreciate the Nebo Foundation and how accessible it makes getting grants for teachers,” said Heidi Dimmick, third-grade teacher at Spanish Oaks Elementary.
Westside Elementary – Emma Olson
Emma Olson, third-grade teacher at Westside Elementary, said, “With this grant money, I will be purchasing a new sets of books for my students to enjoy! The books I’m using now are torn and held together by tape. They have been well loved, but are ready to rest. I’m excited to share some of my favorite classroom reads in new books that many students can enjoy for years and years to come!”
Barnett Elementary – Teressa Macinanti
“Thank you so much to the Nebo Education Foundation and for the matched donation from Principal Brown.This grant will provide my kindergarten class with a large classroom rug. I know this is going to be a game-changer for my classroom. Classroom rugs are monumental tools in the kindergarten learning environment. This rug will provide comfort, seating, safety, warmth, encourage social engagement and aid in behavior management. It will also provide my students with an organized, designated and immovable place to sit on the floor. This is going to greatly increase my ability to help my students manage their behaviors. It will encourage participation by allowing for better eye contact between students and teachers. I know having this rug will greatly impact my teaching abilities and the ability of my students to be fully engaged. Thank you for seeing the value in this project and for investing in this powerful learning tool. I can’t wait to start using it!” exclaimed Teressa Macinanti, kindergarten teacher at Barnett Elementary.
Native American Program – Eileen Quintana
Nebo’s Native American coordinator, Eileen Quintana, said, “Native Americans are represented in a wide variety of ways in children's literature. Regardless of intention, these depictions often reinforce inaccuracies and stereotypes and fail to include the diversity of Native peoples who have lived on this continent for millennia. Too often, particularly with older books, Native Americans are presented in the past tense as a generic group of people rather than as thriving communities with sovereign political status, self-governance, histories, languages, and stories. American Indian cultures have always been dynamic and changing. As educators, we should select books and other materials that feature accurate and tribally specific portrayals of Native people, both past and present.”
Other grants given:
Spring Lake Elementary – Doug Lai
The Nebo Education Foundation functions through generous donations made by individuals and businesses. The Foundation helps enrich students’ education in Nebo School District. Anyone interested in the Nebo Education Foundation or who wishes to make a donation for education is encouraged to contact Seth Sorensen by email seth [dot] sorensen [at] nebo [dot] edu, by phone 801-354-7400, or mail 350 South Main, Spanish Fork, UT 84660.
Photos
SHS: Stacy Nance, Marla Bird, Gayle Gammell, Susan Smith
Santaquin: Kristina Christensen, Keela Goudy, Brian Rowley, Christine Riley, Dale Phelps
East Meadows: Darlynn Menlove, Dale Phelps, Lana Hiskey
Springville Junior: Gayle Gammell, Susan Smith, Marla Bird, Stacy Nance
Wilson: Brian Rowley, Dale Phelps, Chris Riley, Keela Goudy, Kristina Christensen
Spanish Oaks: Dale Phelps, Darlynn Menlove, Lana Hiskey
Westside: Gayle Gammell, Susan Smith, Stacy Nance, Marla Bird
Barnett: Kristina Christensen, Chris Riley, Keela Goudy, Brian Rowley
Native American Program: Darlynn Menlove, Lana Hiskey, Dale Phelps
Spring Lake: Keela Goudy, Darlynn Menlove, Dale Phelps, Chris Riley, Brian Rowley
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