Endowment Fund funds $25,000 in grants

The Wellington Schools Endowment Fund has announced the distribution of nearly $25,000 for 15 grants which will benefit local students.

They cover a wide range of subjects and will benefit students at nearly every grade level.

Any teacher, school employee or student of the school district can submit a grant application to the endowment. The endowment board reviews the applications and selects the recipients.

Grants are funded with the investment income from the endowment, which has grown to nearly $1.4 million. Cash gifts to the endowment fund are never spent; gifts are invested and the interest income is used to award grants.

The 15 projects funded, and those who applied for them, in 2008 include:

* Dave Conklin: $3,825 for television station enhancements at Wellington High School, including dollies, TelePrompTer, monitors and computer to expand closed-circuit TV and media technology curriculum.

* Tina Drake: $3,000 for 20 graphing calculators for students in advanced math courses at WHS.

* Sue Opperman: $600 for supplies for the seventh and eighth grade after-school program at McCormick Middle School.

* Melissa Hatfield: $2,249 for books and other materials to build reading aptitude for special needs students in kindergarten through third grades at Westwood Elementary School.

* Toni Novotny and Gayle Hughes: $1,950 for partial funding for new musical instrument -- marimba -- to be used by percussion students in grades five through 12.

* Sandra Cherpak and Brenda Bosley: $1,500 for KidScripts, to creatively enhance the writing abilities of all sixth graders through writing, staging and performing theatrical plays.

* Joanne Dickason: $1,450 to purchase 100 library books with electronic comprehension testing at Westwood.

* Amy Bogan: $320 for software to make the district's website more useful to students, faculty, parents and community.

* Glenda Hilliker: $400 for transportation and related costs for students to participate in Math Mania at Lorain County Community College.

* Toni Novotny: $1,232 for partial funding for acoustic shells to enhance band and choral performances.

* Cynthia Reighley: $1,600 for a one-year contract for expanding the Accelerated Reader program, providing students, including those with visual impairments, with greater access to a variety of reading materials designed to aid literacy skills and comprehension at MMS.

* Marcee Maurer: $2,500 for Campus Impact, an interactive character building seminar for students in grades five through eight.

* Martha Hecock: $1,200 for transportation and related costs for fourth, fifth and sixth graders to participate in a mock trial experience and young authors conference with other students from throughout Lorain County.

* Toni Novotny: $560 for transportation costs for all band members to attend a Cleveland Orchestra performance at Severance Hall.

* Carolyn Abbey: $2,000 for the academic honors ceremony at WHS for recognition of achievements of students.