2022-2023 Excellence Grant Awards

In its 28th year, the Amherst Education Foundation (AEF) is thrilled to announce a total of $35,269 in grants have been awarded in support of programs spread throughout the Amherst-Pelham School District. Please see below for details on our funding of the following projects: Dash Robots for the Technology Lab, PBL School Leader Network Participation, Restorative Justice Leadership Program, and Theater For All.

Dash Robots for the Technology Lab
Lead Grantee: Jayshree Krishnan
Grant Amount: $2,859
School: Crocker Farm
Description: This project will offer a highly interactive and impactful six-week-long robotic session for grades 1-6 at Crocker Farm, fostering computational thinking and creativity. Students will learn the basics of coding in an equitable and inclusive environment, and they will have the opportunity to learn robotics. The Dash robots can be used not only in coding but in interdisciplinary projects such as ELA, Math, and Social Studies. Students will get a chance to plan, analyze, execute and debug their programs at their own end. This will help our students be next-generation scientists, innovators, testers, coders, or even robotic engineers.

Project-Based Learning School Leader Network Participation
Lead Grantee: Nick Yaffe
Grant Amount: $12,875
Schools: Wildwood Elementary
Description: Three years ago, Wildwood completed a visioning process that resulted in a pedagogical shift to a Project-Based Learning (PBL) model. This grant will enable them to continue to access the type of ongoing professional development which is needed for true school change, as well as learn from a built-in community of schools that are going through a similar process. This project will allow for a multi-school leadership network, in-depth training during two consecutive summers for 30 teachers, and ongoing professional development throughout the school year, which will provide Wildwood with the tools to make a successful transition to a PBL model. The model has been shown to transform student engagement and renew staff's enthusiasm for teaching.

Restorative Justice Leadership Program
Lead Grantee: Aaron Buford
Grant Amount: $10,000
Schools: Amherst High and Middle Schools
Description: This program will increase the breadth and depth of the Restorative Justice Initiative at the High School and expand it into the Middle School. By focusing on mediation rather than discipline, restorative justice practices seeks to engage and hold restorative conversations between students, staff, and/or faculty in order to reestablish trust, communication, or cooperation that has been lost in relationships. This process is a crucial aspect for building school culture and climate around restorative justice to obtain support from teachers and students alike. The Leadership Program will work to build youth power and center student voices to normalize restorative culture across the school and district, building a path for restorative justice to become a fundamental tenet of the ARPS District.

Theater For All
Lead Grantee: John Bechtold
Grant Amount: $9,535
School: Amherst Elementary, Middle and High Schools
Description: This project will fund multiple after-school programs across the Amherst School District to create a through-line of opportunities to play and create. Theater For All will have a club-driven approach which allows for a more casual, opt-in environment in each of our buildings that will offer students early exposure to theater and theater-making. Designed as a multi-school initiative, this project creates a consistent means for students to be involved in an accessible and collaborative art form throughout their school career.