December 6, 2019
By JAMES EVANS
Rutherford County Schools
Melody Todd has a successful history of winning minigrants from the Nissan / Business Education Partnership program.
She estimates she has won at least 15 in the past, and earlier this week, she won two more for classroom projects that encourage students to get hands-on.
Todd, a fourth-grade teacher at Stewarts Creek Elementary School, was one of 11 teachers from the school who won a grant through the program for next semester. Stewarts Creek won more than any other school, with 13 grants, out of more than 40 that were awarded to various schools.
Using one of her grants, Todd will work with students on a project called “Tulane STEM Techs,” which will use the book “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Toulane.”
“I always tie-in a bazillion (English Language Arts) skills with it and get my kids really involved with the book and encourage that level of reading,” Todd said. “And then we do STEM projects throughout and bring in science, technology, tons of math — as much cross-curricular as I can possibly do.”
Twice each year, Nissan and the Business Education Partnership accept applications from teachers who want to offer a special program for students. The projects are intended to foster creativity and excitement, to help cultivate fun learning activities for students.
A full list of winners for the spring semester is included below.
When asked the secret to grant success at Stewarts Creek, Principal Tina Turner said it’s all about collaboration.
Knowing Todd’s history of winning multiple grants in the past, Turner formed a grant-writing committee and put Todd in charge of it.
“She was winning year after year and so I told her, ‘Here’s what we’re going to do,’” Turner said , “‘We’re going to have a committee and you’re going to be the head of it because you know how to get this done.’”
The committee meets throughout the year to brainstorm ideas and the teachers apply for all kinds of grants, not only those offered by the Business Education Partnership, Todd said.
“We always meet together in the computer lab and I try to encourage someone to come up with an idea, and then we can just build from there,” Todd said.
She encourages her fellow teachers to make the proposed projects interactive and to include as many academic subjects as possible.
“Just touch on as many aspects as you can,” Todd advised. “Get students involved. ”
The Business Education Partnership and Nissan have been offering the mini-grant program since 1988. Multiple students throughout the county have been impacted by the program, BEP Executive Director Amelia Bozeman said.
“Nissan’s support has sown seeds of knowledge, inspiring many thousands of students over the years through these mini-grant awards,” Bozeman said.
For the spring semester, more than 90 proposals were submitted by teachers with Rutherford County Schools and Murfreesboro City Schools.
This list of winners follows.
|
Name |
School Name |
Name of Project |
|
Christi Brownlee |
Barfield Elementary |
"Mathmagical" Math Stackers |
|
Kelsey Bergeron |
Barfield Elementary |
Kindergarten Comes to Our Senses |
|
Sheila Berry |
Barfield Elementary |
All in the eyes of the beholder |
|
Tim Carey |
Barfield Elementary |
Dash and Dot Wonder Workshop |
|
Tammy Pirtle |
Black Fox Elementary |
Gardening In The Classroom |
|
Rachel Prater |
Christiana Elementary |
Think Fun! Think Smart! |
|
Shannon Ingram and Karen Lemmon |
Christiana Elementary School |
Take a Walk on the Wild Side |
|
Teresa Jones |
Christiana Elementary School |
3-Dimensional Math |
|
Heather Keweza |
David Youree Elementary |
Breakout of the Ordinary |
|
Heather Keweza |
David Youree Elementary |
STEM through the Morning |
|
Angela Bunyi |
Discovery School at Bellwood |
Enhancing Robotics and the Engineering Design Process through Cubelets |
|
Megan Ferens |
Eagleville School |
Question, Question, Question About It! |
|
Angela Pope |
Erma Siegel Elementary |
We Put the Team in STEAM |
|
Angela Pope |
Erma Siegel Elementary |
Did You Say Robot? |
|
Emily Clark |
Erma Siegel Elementary |
Ladibug, Ladibug, Show me the Way: Using a Ladibug Document Camera to Bring Learning to Life |
|
Gretchen Campbell |
Erma Siegel Elementary |
Building Big with Rigamajigs |
|
Gretchen Campbell |
Erma Siegel Elementary |
Coding with MaKey MaKey |
|
Kim Taylor |
Erma Siegel Elementary |
Bee Bots |
|
Craig Nelius |
John Pittard Elementary |
The Little Engineer Who Could |
|
Stephanie West & Suzanne St. John |
John Pittard Elementary |
Coding for Our Future |
|
Jessica Bloom |
Kittrell Elementary |
To Books....And Beyond |
|
Jessica Bloom |
Kittrell Elementary School |
Not All Who Wonder Are Lost: An Adventure in Geocaching |
|
Jo Lyn McWhorter |
Kittrell Elementary School |
SPRK a Love for STEM |
|
Jo Lyn McWhorter |
Lascassas Elementary |
Makey Makey, Fun, Fun! |
|
Anna Sledge |
McFadden School of Excellence |
To STEMfinity and Beyond! |
|
Sarah Golden |
Mitchell-Neilson Schools |
Ukuleles? Hooray! |
|
Felicia Jackson |
Overall Creek Elementary |
Snapped on Learning: Learning with a Snap |
|
Christy Higgins |
Rock Springs Elementary |
OSMO - Outstanding Students Moving Onward |
|
Debbie Reyes |
Rocky Fork Elementary |
"Signing" Up for Learning & Fun! |
|
Tansy Raynor |
Rocky Fork Elementary |
Move Your Body, Move Your Brain! |
|
Heidi Redmon |
Smyrna Elementary School |
"The Energy Challenge" |
|
Amber Morton |
Smyrna Primary School |
Cooking for Learning |
|
Angeline Restrepo Hale |
Smyrna Primary School |
Building Brains with Literacy and STEAM BINS |
|
Hayley Ellis |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Lego Chain Reactions |
|
Jennifer Lane |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Unlocking the Code to Holocaust History |
|
Jennifer Lane |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Olympic Medal Ready for the TN Ready |
|
Kelsey Dunn |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
One Fish, Two Fish, STEM Fish, TREE fish |
|
Laura Kiilerich Bowles |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Here We Go Loopty-Loo, Shapes are a Wonderful Ride! |
|
Melanie Strickland |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
I’m Gonna Take My Robot to the Old Town Road and Code 'til I Can’t No More! |
|
Melanie Strickland |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Hey Mr. Roboto! |
|
Vickie Stem |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Teeny Tiny Indestructible Tardigrades |
|
Brittany Breard |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
"Escaping" the Average Classroom |
|
Melody Todd |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Tulane STEM Techs |
|
Melody Todd |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
I Spy a Structure Transformation |
|
Sarah Parker |
Stewarts Creek Elementary |
Forceful Flying Machines |
|
Bethany Rader, Robin DeSalvatore |
Stewarts Creek Elementary School |
Busy Bee Morning STEM Bins |
|
Wanda Jones |
Stewartsboro Elementary |
Making and Tinkering with STEM for prescoolers |
|
Jennifer Buttrey |
Thurman Francis Arts Academy |
I Wonder, I Code |
|
Amy O Grisham |
Walter Hill Elementary |
Breakout Box |
|
Heather Eskridge |
Walter Hill Elementary |
Wild About Reading Robots |
|
Joyce Hildebrandt |
Walter Hill Elementary |
Curious about Cubelets |
|
Lindsey Stephens |
Walter Hill Elementary |
STEM Fun for First Graders! |
|
Ashley Pennington |
Walter Hill School |
Toolboxes for Constructing Math Concepts |
|
Beth Y Hobbs |
Walter Hill School |
Keyboarding for Pre-K |
|
Kristy Parker |
Walter Hill School |
Story Book Stem |