Teacher Grants

A Remarkable Achievement: $20,000 for Our Schools!

Yes, you read that right—$20,000! This remarkable investment has been made possible thanks to the incredible generosity of HEF donors – parents, grandparents, alumni, teachers, retirees, business leaders and community stakeholders. Your unwavering support has allowed HEF to make this significant contribution directly into the classrooms and learning spaces of our students.

Congratulations to the 2023/2024 Grant Recipients!

We would like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to the dedicated educators and staff who have been selected to receive these grants. These teachers and programs have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to fostering excellence in our schools.

Your Donations at Work: A Profound Impact on Students

Hudsonville Early Childhood Center:

Clevertouch Interactive Touch Screen System – Joan VanFossen
Purchase of one Clevertouch Interactive Touch Screen System, a dynamic hands-on, visual learning tool, to improve daily instruction and lessons in a 3-year old inclusive preschool classroom.

ASD Taskbox Boxes and Materials – Jessica Sterling
Purchase of hands-on manipulatives such as sensory items, fine motor activities, reading props and social/emotional learning tools that will be used with Autism Spectrum Disorder students during whole group instruction, along with small group interventions.

Alward Elementary School:

Flexible Seating – Arielle Skinner
Purchase of multiple flexible seating options for classroom use.

Park Elementary:

Pop and Feel Alphabet Letters – Jodi Durham
Purchase of a variety of 3-D alphabet letters including fidget pop-it letters, plastic letter blocks, wood letters with flashcards and textured letters.

Jamestown Lower Elementary:

Phoneme and Grapheme Literacy Kits – Melanie Prominski
Purchase of supplemental teaching materials such as language cards to support phoneme/grapheme instruction.

South Elementary School:

Intramural Softball Equipment – Brad Nederveld
Purchase of twenty-five softball gloves, cones, helmets and bats to allow full student participation regardless of access to equipment.

Riley Street Middle School:

Microphone Headsets – Dione Hickok and Jordyn VanDeVelde 
Purchase of headphones with microphones to record stories.

Vertical Whiteboard Surfaces for Math Instruction – Stephanie Chenlo, Ashley Buchinger and Lois Atkins 
Purchase of bulk whiteboards and marker/erasing supplies to support visual “vertical” math teaching techniques.

5/6 Building at Georgetown:

Vertical Whiteboard Surfaces for Math Instruction – Susan Ghysels 
Purchase of bulk whiteboards and marker/erasing supplies to support visual “vertical” math teaching techniques.

One School, One Book – Melanie McClure 
Contribution to leverage building resources to launch the “One School, One Book” initiative.

Hudsonville High School:

Vertical Whiteboard Surfaces for Math Instruction – Andrea Twigg and Joe Szymanski 
Purchase of bulk whiteboards and marker/erasing supplies to support visual “vertical” math teaching techniques

Art Program Tools and Equipment – Jason Meyer and Jesse VanderBand 
Purchase of power tools and eight plastic human skull references to be used between the ceramics/sculpture classes and advanced drawing/painting classes.

RealCare Child Development Babies – Katlyn VandenHeuvel, Lindsey O’Gorman and Angela Bennett 
Purchase of two of the ten replacement baby simulators needed for the Life Skills class.

Special Education Lifeskills Kitchen Supplies – Emily Ouzts, Brian Courville, Steven Burns, Bobbie Jo Maly, Jesse Handelsman, Alissa Smith 

Purchase of new small appliances and replacement of essential utensils for the Life Skills kitchen to teach independent cooking and baking skills to students with mild – moderate cognitive impairment, emotional impairment and autism spectrum disorder.

Alternative Pathway to Graduation – Delia Bush 
Purchase of classroom items to support Alternative Pathway to Graduation student success.

Hudsonville Community Education:

Scholarship for Youth Participation in Community Activities for Low-Income Individuals – Rebecca Fabiano
Seed funding to serve as the catalyst to start the scholarship program for low-income student participation in community education opportunities.

We commend these educators and staff for their dedication to our students and their commitment to enhancing the learning experience in our schools.

Past HEF Grant Awards