Grants Overview

Grant Detail by Discipline
Grant Detail by School

Each year, grant applications are submitted by teachers or administrators to the Foundation Board. The Board thoroughly reviews proposed grants and awards those deemed most compelling and beneficial to students’ growth and development. The Foundation works closely with the administration and Board of Education to insure that all proposals are consistent with the school district’s curricular needs and long- range plans, and that any grant’s ongoing maintenance costs can be absorbed into the school budget.

Thanks to the generosity of the Byram Hills community, the Byram Hills Education Foundation has awarded nearly 278 grants totaling Nearly $3 million in funding since its inception in 1994. Consistent with its mission, grants have been awarded to each of our four schools and district wide, enabling teachers and administrators to introduce creative programs and equipment beyond what is covered by the school district’s annual operating budget. The Foundation’s consistent funding has encouraged teachers to ‘think outside the box’ in providing students with enriching, curriculum-based learning opportunities.

Enhancing Education. Every School. Every Day.

In 2010-11, the Byram Hills Education Foundation awarded thirteen grants to the Byram Hills School District totaling a record $234,921.

Walls That Teach: $9,711
This grant brings a dynamic, creative and totally “hands-on” element to Coman Hill, enabling students to beautify their school hallways.  Students from each classroom will work with a professional artist to brainstorm ideas and participate in the design and painting of curriculum-based murals which will adorn the school hallways.  The goal is to foster a sense of collaboration and community among all students, generate excitement and school pride, while creating beautiful, lasting works of art;

Reading and Writing FUNdations: $30,709
The grant will fund materials and training for full implementation in 1^st and 2^nd grades, expanding the highly successful program introduced to all Kindergarten classrooms this school year.  In an age appropriate manner, FUNdations ensures the teaching of the necessary early language skills using a systematic and hands-on approach; 

Behavioral Education and Support: $3,283
This grant will fund a character education program called PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports/Strategies) for Coman Hill teachers.  All Coman Hill teachers will receive a set of books to clearly explain and demonstrate the three core areas of behavior: being respectful, being responsible, and being safe.  This grant will aid in promoting positive behavior by clearly identifying and reviewing the core behavioral concepts with students and maintaining consistency throughout the Coman Hill community;

Lego Education for Introductory Robotics: $4,106
This is a pilot grant for Lego Education WeDo Construction sets to be used in 4^th grade technology Encore at Wampus.  The lego sets will provide an introductory experience to robotics based on their science unit of simple machines;

Musical Theatre A - Z: $5,135
This grant provides a yearlong musical theater project for the entire 4th grade at Wampus.  The funds will provide materials for creating sets, original “home-made” lighting instruments and costuming, while introducing students to new technologies like digital cameras, sound systems and editing software.  This is an exciting, cross-curricular, collaborative, hands-on learning experience;

Performance and Multimedia Facility: $69,684
This grant will help equip the Wampus cafeteria/stage area with the type of high quality multimedia/technology presentations that have become a regular part of the Byram Hills culture. This project will complement equivalent multimedia facilities in all of the other Byram Hills schools and brings the BHEF tota; expenditure for up-to-date performance and multimedia facilities to more than $200,000.00;  

Rachel's Challenge: $4,800
This grant expands last year’s highly successful and nationally acclaimed program to 6^th and 7^th graders at HCC. Rachel’s Challenge is designed to motivate positive changes in the way students treat one another and themselves. The program incorporates an assembly and training session, followed by student education in the ways each student can bring positive change to his/her school;

E-Readers: $7,039
This grant provides funding to purchase multiple E-Readers (such as Kindles) for the 7^th grade Special Education students. This will greatly benefit those students struggling with reading by making it easier for them to access books; improve note-taking strategies and aid in decoding and comprehension for the required reading assignments.  With their high-tech component, E-Readers will also add to students’ enjoyment of reading as a life-long skill;

"Word Play" for Language Arts Enrichment
This grant will fund a variety of language arts games to enrich the 7^th grade curriculum.  The games will enable teachers to reinforce teaching and enhance concepts by engaging students in a fun, innovative way;

Sustainability Education: $52,900
This grant enables four teams of three teachers each to design interdisciplinary units of study for grades 9-12 in collaboration with other districts though Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES.  This funding of this grant extends this initiative to the high school, following the successful incorporation of Sustainability Education into the K-8 curriculum, and brings the BHEF total expenditure for Sustainability Education to more than $167,000;

TI-Nspire Navigator: $36,940
This grant provides funds to purchase nine TI-Nspire classroom navigator systems and the associated computer software for use in the high school math classes.  This state-of-the-art system coordinates and accentuates the power of the TI-Nspire calculator, allowing students to wirelessly receive lesson documents and instant assessments and to send responses back to the teacher instantly.  The system will increase classroom efficiency, while enhancing both students’ technological literacy and mathematical concept development;

Production-Quality Digital HD Monitor : $3,361
This grant provides a production scale, 65” digital HD television monitor for the high school.  This new TV monitor will replace a smaller, 10-year old monitor and will complement the other high-end audio-visual software and equipment used by the visual arts department.  All film students in the high school will benefit greatly from the addition of this new, larger HD model, as it will enhance their study of film in an authentic viewing environment; and

Social Skills Development: $5,553
This grant supports a program focused on improving problem-solving skills for Special Education students who have been identified as having deficits in social and emotional functioning.  The grant provides books, videos, games and other materials for psychologists to use in supplementing the Second Step curriculum already in use. The materials from this grant will enhance direct instruction of student empathy, emotional regulation skills, and social problem skills.