Foundation for Eden Prairie Schools Grants

The Foundation for Eden Prairie Schools (FEPS), is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization formed in 1998. FEPS' mission is to support and enhance the legacy of excellence in Eden Prairie Schools. FEPS' grants support innovative teachers and staff that have a direct and measurable impact on student learning. FEPS is completely reliant on personal and corporate donations. Your gifts do make a difference. Students and teachers are the beneficiaries of your generosity. To donate please click here.

Goals of the FEPS Grant Program:

• Provide large grants of $5,000 to $25,000 to Eden Prairie education professionals seeking to make significant change.
• Serve as an incubator for innovative ideas that impact curriculum, instruction and assessment while achieving meaningful, measurable results.
• Encourage innovative ideas that have a direct and significant impact on students' passion for learning.

2011 Grant Awards

The Foundation for Eden Prairie Schools (FEPS) is proud to announce this year’s grant winners.

In January 2012, the FEPS board of directors awarded $24,950 to Eden Prairie Schools for innovative new programs in the district. Two of the grants are paid for by generous donations from the Matheson Endowment and ADC Foundation. A majority of the funding for the grants comes from funds raised at the Taste of Eden Prairie.

The following grants will support and enhance the legacy of excellence in the Eden Prairie Schools:

A Field Study of Insects at CMS:  Colleen Grant & Sue Nielsen have been awarded $3,200 to purchase the supplies necessary for 700 students at CMS to organize and carry out a field study in the natural environment. Students will collect, identify, and classify insects, as well as analyze data. This new idea compliments the life science curriculum. The students will perform laboratory methods and critical thinking skills like professional scientists.

Leadership Coaching at EPHS:  Irene Kelly & Conn McCartan have been awarded $5,000 to provide training to high school teachers in leadership coaching. It compliments and extends an existing program. Educators who have integrated coaching skills into their methods report that students are personally empowered, significantly more self-directed and measurably improve their academic performance. This grant was sponsored by the Matheson Family endowment.

A Vision for Reading at Eden Lake:  Lisa Birno & Amy Youngstrom have been awarded $7,500 to purchase a Visagraph device that records eye movements using infrared sensors through a set of goggles that connect to a PC. It represents cutting-edge reading therapy. Data collected identifies visual inefficiencies that may occur as a student reads, helping determine appropriate interventions and monitor student progress as they improve. This grant was sponsored by the ADC Foundation.

Reading A-Z for Literacy Achievement at Forest Hills:  Adam Leicht has been awarded $2,600 to provide iPod touches, an iPad, and a variety of apps, primarily those created by the Learning A-Z website. This site focuses on vocabulary development and word recognition skills by providing quality texts with challenging vocabulary coupled with extensive and rigorous instruction with that challenging vocabulary. The use of this app is approved by EP Tech and will compliment current literacy plans.

Focus on Learning at Prairie View:  Mary Andert has been awarded $6,649 to provide 540 elementary students with two classroom sets of digital cameras to be used with a new interdisciplinary curriculum which integrates language arts, math, art, social studies, and science. Students will be sharing and writing about what they photograph in order to make learning more relevant.

2010 Grant Awards

In late 2010, FEPS awarded $27,500 to Eden Prairie Schools for the following grants:

World Savvy at CMS:  Melissa Damon & Karen Nelson were awarded $3,510 to fund a World Affairs Challenge to be added to Enriched Social Studies courses at CMS. This program engaged students in project-based learning to explore some of today's most pressing local and global issues. The topic for 2011 was, "Food: Feeding the Planet Sustainably in the 21st Century." This grant was sponsored by the Matheson Family endowment.

Equipment upgrade for Eagle Vision Studios at EPHS:  Perry Kennedy was awarded $3,018 to purchase upgraded and advanced equipment for the video production and journalism program at EPHS. The wave of the future in television production is high definition P2 Cards and Readers. This grant helped set EPHS students above the average for equipment knowledge and usage, while it also benefited the programming enjoyed by up to 10,000 viewers per day. This grant was sponsored by the ADC Foundation.

Rolling Book Bins at CMS:  Jon Kahle was awarded $8,000 to purchase 6-8 Rolling Book Bins to supplement content-area curriculum with high-interest, multi-reading level, non-fiction books. This grant helped improve our secondary students' comprehension of non-fiction, which is the mode of delivery for over two-thirds of classroom instruction at their age level.

All Aboard for Childhood Literacy at Eden Prairie Family Center:  Rae Ann Brenckman was awarded $7,500 to provide best practice supplies and equipment for enabling school readiness by pre-kindergarten students. Money went towards a Professional Curriculum Library and also 250 quality children’s books. This is a research-proven method of lowering the achievement gap in early childhood.

Teamwork on the Dangle Duo at EPHS:  Nancy Pudas was awarded $4,986 to purchase and install a new "Dangle Duo" element to enhance the high ropes course at the high school. Students work in groups on the physical elements of a ropes course in order to solve a problem that forces them to push beyond their comfort zone and analyze needs and best practices. Dangle Duo requires students to safely climb 30-feet in the air by using ropes to go up a series of ever-widening gaps between boards.

2009 Grant Awards

In late 2009, FEPS awarded $32,500 to Eden Prairie Schools for the following grants:

Katy Anderson (Cedar Ridge Elementary) received $10,129 for Mindstorms Learning Kits used to implement an engaging, science/technology-related experience with LEGO Robotics equipment. The grant was funded by a large donation from the ADC Foundation.

Kristin Gabel (Eden Prairie High School) received $6,106 for a polymerase chain reaction machine for biology courses which will allow students to take a small amount of DNA and amplify it until there is enough DNA to manipulate or test in the laboratory setting.

Jackie Ahlers (Central Middle School) and Mike Skarp (Prairie View Elementary) received $2,880 and $4,957 respectively for adjustable-height standing desks, with stools, for their classrooms.

Nicola Huss (Forest Hills Elementary) received $5,000 for multiple classroom sets of non-fiction books that integrate science and social studies into the reading and writing curricula across all grade levels.

Peggy Simenson (Cedar Ridge) is developing a training program to bring parent volunteers into the school to help students be successful in reading and math in kindergarten and first grade.

The Foundation received over $171,000 in grant requests from 21 applicants this past year alone. The Foundation is limited by its financial resources but not by a lack of teacher innovation or creativity.

December 2008 Awards

In late 2008, FEPS awarded $29,000 in grants to six teachers/staff members in the District. FEPS received over $185,000 in grant applications from 26 applicants. Grants were awarded based on a number of criteria including impact on student engagement and learning, potential scope of impact, and sustainability. Foundation for Eden Prairie School Grants were awarded to the following primary applicants:

• Barbara Astry at Eden Prairie High School ($5,044) - for books, computer books and other materials in support of struggling readers and, in particular, in support of a growing population of autistic students.
• Lisa Birno at Eden Lake ($4,500) - for creation of toolkits for classroom teachers to use as they implement a Read-to-Self program which provides for large blocks of structured, independent reading time and encourages students to be independent, successful readers.
• Karen Casey at Cedar Ridge ($6,838) - to fund a multidisciplinary program (reading, writing, the arts) called Classroom Conversations on Race and Diversity which involves children more directly in the districts equity goals.
• Lori Ford at Eden Prairie High School ($6,355) - for the purchase of software which allows teachers to simultaneously monitor, control, and share computer lab resources from a single location thereby facilitating and enhancing classroom instruction.
• Sarah Kuipers at Prairie View ($2,300) - to allow the creation of reusable kindergarten literacy backpacks which include books and props that students can take home and which will promote and encourage parent-child reading time.
• Michael Welsh with Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) ($4,000) - to facilitate the establishment of father-initiated support and informational services and parent-child activities which will aid fathers of children with special needs.

The Foundation solicits requests for grants district-wide. This was the second year in a row that grant requests totaled over $185,000. The Foundation awarded $75,000 in large grants over the last 3 years to seven different schools, to ECSE and to district-wide initiatives. In announcing the new grants, FEPS President Anne Byrne said that the FEPS grant program shows that the Foundation has a broad, positive impact across the district and continues to foster and support creative and innovative ideas.

The Foundation looks for innovative proposals that have a direct and measurable impact on student learning. Ideally, the grants will be used for significant and innovative curriculum changes that serve to motivate students and engage them in the learning process.

December 2007 Awards

In December 2007, FEPS awarded $30,000 in grants to six district staff members. The grants were awarded for innovative projects having a direct and measurable impact on student learning. Grants were given to:

• Matt Hardy, Cedar Ridge teacher, received $7,700 for a two-year project titled "Go Green: High-Tech Environmental Science in the Elementary School".
• Kay Rosheim, Prairie View teacher, received $5,000 for a one-year project titled "Methods to Increase Non-Fiction Reading Instruction".
• Marcia Beezley, Director of Student Support Services, received $4,000 for research on the use of tabletop smartboards in special education.
• Terri Johnson, K-12 parent involvement coordinator, received $5,000 for a K-12 math night.
• Jennifer Totoritis, Forest Hills art teacher, received $3,900 to start an art club at that school.
• Cindy Stark, Oak Point student support services coordinator, received $4,500 for ball chairs to be used in classrooms for special needs students.

During 2007, FEPS received nearly $190,000 in grant applications from 24 staff members. Grants are financed by private donations and by the annual Taste of Eden Prairie event.

Summary of Grants & Grant details for 2006-2011 (pdf)