RELEASE DATE: Immediate.
CONTACT: Lila Phillips, executive director – lilahp1@gmail.com
New Fall 2022 teacher grants and educational projects have been awarded for the El Dorado School District (ESD) by the El Dorado Education Foundation (EDEF).
Since 1997, a total of 275 proposals have been approved for educators in the district. Proposals are reviewed anonymously, from a judging committee of university professors. EDEF Fall 2022 teacher grants and projects include the following:
“Demonstrating Ecosystem Interrelatedness with Ecocolumns”. Alexandra Marlin – EHS. Approximately 150 10-12th graders. Subject: Environmental Science.
Through this project, multiple topics of environmental science will be explored, including ecosystems and ecocolumns. An ecocolumn, a tower structure with several chambers, can create an ecosystem to be observed and measured. Cycles of carbon, phosphorus, nitrogen, and water cycle will be included. Further topics such as tropic levels, primary productivity, soils, eutrophication, ecological tolerance, biodiversity, and aquaculture; can be incorporated. Teams of students will build and collect data to create self-sustaining ecosystems, including plants, aquatic chambers, and fish.
“Structure Determines Function: Anatomy & Physiology”. Susan Johnson – EHS. Approximately 60 11-12th graders. Subjects: Anatomy & Physiology.
This project will teach students foundational anatomy concepts and skills to understand complex physiological processes. Participants will study molecular structures, recognize different tissues, and identify organs to develop clear understanding of molecular, tissue, and organ processes. Included will be cell signaling, cellular recognition/defense, tissue growth/repair, secretion, excretion, digestion, gas exchange, and feedback mechanisms. Students will learn about laboratory procedures, as well as microscopes, spirometers, stethoscopes, sphygmomanometers, 3-D models of the anatomy, and others.
“National Social Studies Honor Society”. Wayne Garner – EHS. Approximately 1,300 9-12th graders. Subject: Social Studies.
Chartering a national Social Studies Honor Society will strengthen this field and bring emphasis on what it can provide to students. Objectives will include monthly meetings with expert speakers on relatable topics, and Arkansas history-related field trips. Certificates and pins will be available, plus further experiences, for those considering careers in social sciences. Disciplines will include US history, world history, government, African-American studies, and Arkansas history. For inducted members, National Social Studies Honor Society regalia, including Rho Kappa honor cords, will be provided to wear at graduation.
“Barton Bakes”. Alisa Davis – Barton. Approximately 40 8th graders. Subjects: Math & Reading.
This grant will fund ingredients, supplies, and equipment for food lab baking classes. Students will work together via teams in classroom kitchens, creating food pleasing to the eye as well as the palette. Included will be instructions on ways to follow complex recipes, as well as presentation skills and artistic design. Students will be motivated by accomplishments in their finished products, with benefits for families, faculty, staff, and the community. A Baking Competition will take place in the spring. Highlights from class work will be shared during a school Parent Night.
“Sew a Little Costume for Me: Technical Theatre Costuming Project” Ruth Griffin – EHS. Approximately 70 9-12th graders. Subject: Technical Theatre.
This project will teach students beneficial and useful skills in creating clothing, and costumes for theatrical productions. Students will learn sewing techniques from basics for everyday life, to more-advanced creations. Topics will include hand-stitching, how to use patterns and sewing machines, plus fitting and altering clothing to measurements of mannequins. Students will work individually and in groups. Some completed projects may compete in state and other Thespian competitions. Finished costumes will be seen in school theatrical productions.
“Magnifying the Orchestra Experience”. Jennifer Michaels – EHS, Barton, & Washington. Approximately 60 5-12th graders. Subjects: Fine & Performing Arts – Orchestra.
This project will provide orchestra students with opportunities to work with professional musicians, conductors, college students, professors, and professional symphony orchestras, including the South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra (SASO). Events will be held to enhance students’ education in technique and musicality. These experiences will encourage students’ musical improvements in individual and group performances. They will be able to ask questions and receive focused feedback from personnel. Students may take part in All –Region workshops, master classes, concert assessments, festivals, winter camps, and end-of-year performances.
“Is Art an Answer?” Katie Harwell & Brady McDuffie – EHS. Approximately 216 9-12th graders. Subjects: Visual Art, Art Appreciation, & 3-D Studio Art.
Art can help students improve confidence, manage stress, stay more positive, problem-solve, and promote critical thinking. This project will integrate art and literacy, teaching students that when life can become difficult, art may be of help. Classes will design murals, discover printing techniques, master floor knitting, paint to music, and experiment with ceramics. The school’s literacy instructional facilitator (LIF) will help students learn to express their own inspiring artist statements. Local Artists-in-Education will collaborate on this project. Artwork will be displayed at the South Arkansas Arts Center (SAAC) in an Art Show set for the spring.
“A Knight to Remember: a Renaissance Madrigal Feast”. Ruth Griffin – EHS. Approximately 120 9-12th graders. Subjects: Fine Arts.
This is a fine arts department project, in which students and resource personnel will study the influence of the Renaissance upon learning, as well as the impact this time-period continues to have today. Topics will include choir, music, key playwrights, clothing, scenic techniques, plus research into the lives of everyday people. Banners, decorative elements, costumes, flowers, table/wall décor, and popular foods also will be featured. Studies will culminate in the development and presentation of a production and concert as a community dinner theater, a Renaissance Madrigal Feast.
“Read for the Record XIII”. Jeannie Strother. Hugh Goodwin, Northwest, Yocum & Yocum Primary. Approximately 1,500 K-4th graders. Subject: Literacy.
Read for the Record XIII is scheduled to take place this fall at each elementary school. Students in grades K-2nd grades will read the book, Nigel and the Moon, by Antwan Eady. The school district will join with millions of others by reading the same book. Features may include local or online celebrity readers. Each student in grades K-2 will receive a copy of the book. Schools will conduct fun and interactive learning activities in relation to related themes of study.
EHS Academic Letterman Jackets. EHS – 27 12th graders. Subjects: all core subjects, including Math, Science, & Literacy.
The El Dorado School District is one of the few public school districts in the United States to award an Academic Letter and an Academic Letterman Jacket. Seniors must maintain a 3.75 GPA throughout their high school tenures. 27 letter jackets will be awarded at an assembly on Tuesday, October 18, at 10:00 AM, in the El Dorado High School (EHS) Auditorium.
EDEF Board members are: President Claiborne Deming, Vice President Alice Mahony, Secretary Walter Compton, Elaine Deming, Elise Drake, Carol Felton, Don Wales, Sherrel Johnson, and Margy Niel. Tax-deductible donations are welcome for all present and future EDEF El Dorado Public School District projects.