TISD Foundation awards nearly $50K in grants
TEXARKANA, Texas — Several Texas High School teachers recently received surprises in the form of monetary grants for new programs for their students.
The Texarkana Independent School District Education Foundation distributed $49,562.75 in grants to teachers who intend to use the funds to help their students innovate while learning.
THS science teachers Nathan Upchurch, Kelly Rowland and Marshall Mcintosh partnered to write a grant for tools to create hands-on lesson materials for students to learn about flooding in reservoirs.
The trio received $5,000 and immediately set out to acquire the supplies for giving students a new type of learning experience.
“I’m teaching agricultural practices with land use management. With that, you have to look at different types of tilling, different types of crop management and things like that,” Rowland said.
“They have a really hard time conceptualizing that just from me telling them (about contour lines and rows in the hills.)”
Rowland used her hand to carve through the sand in a simulation table, which created a divot, and the scene began to transform to show the ultimate impact on the landform.
“Runoff is a big deal with agriculture, so if we have a field here and it rains, where’s that going to go” Rowland said.
The projection on the sand began to twinkle, simulating rainfall and showing how the landform would be changed by the weather.
“You can do runoff, erosion, lots of different types of application with land,” Rowland said.
Upchurch said he hopes to have two or three more of the tables built.
Mcintosh teaches a military preparation course that also will use the simulation sand table.
“One of the big things you use in the military is map reading,” he said.
“Maps we use are topographic maps, so they can get an idea of what it’s like actually reading a map.”
The three teachers share a belief that giving students hands-on lessons bolsters learning.
THS art teachers Shea Phillips and Giselle Galvan received a joint $2,500 grant to expand the ceramics program.
“Hopefully, it’ll bring our ceramics program a lot more attention and maybe the public and even other students in class to become more interested in finding other outlets to express themselves,” Galvan said.
Senior Jason Balderas said he has made six pieces of pottery in Galvan’s class and has been interested in art for the four years he has been in high school.
“It just really helped me relieve my stress. I’m really grateful for this class, even though I didn’t initially sign up for it,” Balderas said.
Phillips said she and Galvan have a goal to make the ceramics program sustainable by teaching students how to be entrepreneurs and paying attention to the ceramics trends so they can sell their pieces and help fund the program.
Phillips said the money raised from the sales will help the department buy a new kiln and new pottery wheels.
Other grants recipients were —
• Ashley Harrington and Rachel Byrd from Spring Lake Park Elementary School;
• Michelle Crane, Aimee Gardner, John Hubbard, Chris Foster, Parker Wright, Michael Folse and Thomas Folse from Texas High School;
• Lauren Parker, Laura Ethridge, Jade Duhart, Stephanie Parker and Quoquise Nickleberry from Westlawn Elementary School;
• Kelli Thomerson from Waggoner Creek Elementary;
• Sonya Freeze, Lindsey Fuller, Angela Taylor, Martha Rosales and Jennifer Jones from Nash Elementary School;
• Tiyawna Getlington, Katy Matamoros, Luchonda Chenier and April Cisneros from Theron Jones Early Literacy Center;
• Dorthea Smith, Hailey Christen, Taylor Jordan, Katherin Kowzic, Wendy Crowell, Jamie Bergt, Samantha Hubnik, Robyn Parker and Rhonda Banks from Texas Middle School;
• Dyslexia specialists Tara Baker, Kristi Crowson, Robin Harris, Gayle Hill, Bridget Ivory and Stephanie Yowell; and
• Amy Kyles, Heather Phillips, Kristen Icenhower, Paolo Martinez, Meah Wilson, Sylvia Contreras, Jennifer Perez and Rebecca Shaw from Highland Park Elementary School.