Staff Board of Trustees
For Immediate Release: July 21, 2004
For More Information Contact:
Susie Kaeser, - 216/932-5110
When the Cleveland Heights-University Heights public schools open in August, nine teams of teachers from seven district schools will be ready to implement new initiatives to support student achievement with grant funds from Reaching Heights.
This month Reaching Heights awarded a total of $9,150 for the grants that will be implemented during the 2004-05 school year. A second round of grants will be made in October for the upcoming school year.
Four grants went to Boulevard Elementary School. One of these grants includes teachers from Coventry and Oxford who will visit schools in Hungary this summer and then share their new relationships and knowledge of Hungarian culture with their students. Boulevard's grants will also encourage students to do homework, engage families in math and reading activities, and use music activities to learn about American history.
Teams at Roxboro, Gearity, and Fairfax elementary schools received one grant each to focus on reading, and two teams at Heights High will implement projects to help struggling readers.
This is the 14 th year that Reaching Heights , the community based support organization for the Heights schools, has awarded School Team Grants. The grants of up to $1,500 may be used for materials and other expenses essential to implementing action plans that give students new avenues to success. The grants affect students, increase teacher knowledge of effective strategies, and give teachers recognition and support for their commitment to solving problems.
“At the end of the school year the grant teams report on the results of their efforts. It's a wonderful evening. We hear about great ideas that make a difference to children, and are energized by the dedication and creativity of our educators,” said Executive Director, Susie Kaeser.
Reaching Heights raises the funds for the grants from the community through the Annual Adult Community Spelling Bee and designated gifts. Reaching Heights has awarded nearly $160,000 to more than 140 projects since the grant program began in 1990.
