Teacher / School Applications

The Educational Foundation will award up to five grants totaling up to $5,000 per school for innovative projects that are creative, unique and benefit the majority or a good portion of the student population. Each school must guarantee a 10% cash match for the total requested dollars.

The grants were developed based on the Lexington District One’s Competency-Based Standards in the areas of Strategic and Situational Decision-Making, which includes engagement and encouragement of strategic innovations. Elementary and middle school applicants should propose a school program that addresses this area and promotes students’ paths toward college, career and citizenship preparedness.

For full details, please download the linked application.  All applications are due to the Educational Foundation Office no later than 4:00 pm on Thursday, January 25, 2024.

Please note that all Innovation Grant applicants must make a brief presentation to the Educational Foundation’s Allocations Committee members on a date TBD at 5:00 p.m. in the Central Services Board Room. We will publish the presentation date as soon as it is determined.

Application Deadline: January 25, 2024

Innovation Grants for K-8 Schools Application

We are fortunate to have Michelin as a very kind friend to Lexington School District One. Each year Michelin donates to the Lexington One Educational Foundation to make these grants possible. Teachers may receive up to $250 for a grant award and the foundation typically offers up to 10 grants each fall and spring.

Objective:

These grants provide Lexington School District One teachers an opportunity to enhance the educational experience for students by supplying financial aid for activities that would otherwise be unavailable. The intent is not to supplement normal school supplies, but to allow for more creative learning opportunities that are not normally supported by the school supply budget.

Criteria:

Grant requests should be educational projects or activities that have the most impact on students and will enhance their educational experiences in the classroom. A few examples include:

• Science Kits
• Supplementary Books to enhance the school textbooks and curriculum
• Supplemental instructional materials that support grade level curriculum
• Rewards to students for special academic recognition
• Field Trips that broaden and enhance classroom teaching
• Note that this grant will not provide basic classroom supplies.

Special consideration will be made for STEM projects, however, the academic merit of a project is paramount.

Fall Application Due: June 15

Spring Application Due: November 15

Michelin Golden Apple Teacher Grant Application

For the past seven years the Educational Foundation board has chosen to support and strengthen literacy efforts in Lexington District One via our Bucks for Books Grants. The grants supported elementary and middle school literacy during the first four years, and then provided books to the classrooms of our first-year teachers throughout the district during its fifth year of awards. Last year the grant investments supported Lexington District One ninth grade reading recovery by providing books to English 1 teachers for their students.

This school year our board shifted the focus back to Lexington One elementary schools in an effort to support kindergarten teachers and their students. Every kindergarten teacher received $250 worth of books for their classrooms to enhance the LTRS program teaching that was recently directed by the SC State Department of Education. 

All of our Bucks for Books Grants aim to positively impact the literacy skills of Lexington District One students.  Total grant funds invested to date equal $160,250.

These grants are derived from the Foundation’s LEAP Emergency Funds and enable our school leaders to offer a small amount of immediate assistance to their Lexington District One families in crisis. During the 2020-21 school year, close to $77,000 that was divided among all 30 Lexington District One schools. In the spring of the following school year, the Board of Directors awarded an additional cycle of Helping Hands Grants to Schools that totaled $87,768. Typical support provided includes groceries, school supplies, clothing, and shoes for students whose families are experiencing a temporary emergency and financial set back. The Educational Foundation staff become involved when a family’s situation is a more desperate one that may require additional financial support via a LEAP Emergency Application.

Our Educational Foundation is extremely fortunate to have Michelin as a dedicated corporate partner and a very generous supporter. In 2018 the Lexington, SC Michelin USA leadership donated $30,000 to invest in our Lexington District One VEX robotics school teams. Michelin renewed this commitment in 2021 due to Michelin executives who recognize the benefits provided to students who participate in robotics teams. We are thrilled to have the company investing in our future engineers, programmers and architects via this gift to support our Lexington District One VEX robotics teams and students.

We are very fortunate to have Nephron Pharmaceutical Corporation as a terrific and generous partner. The company’s annual generosity provides $300 grants to each of our Lexington District One seniors who take the Pharmacology course as a way to learn about the industry and possibly earn certification as a Pharmacy Technician at the completion of the coursework. Foundation leaders cannot say enough kind words about the company’s commitment to developing future pharmacists via their kind support of our students!

The Educational Foundation offers small grants to new international teachers in an effort to help them get settled in the USA as they begin their teaching career with Lexington District One. The district’s Human Resources staff work with the foundation staff to identify these grant recipients each year. The grant provides to each teacher a food gift card, meals at the home school for the first few months, and a small stipend towards the first month’s rent payment.

These grants support Lexington District One in a variety of ways by assisting with or supporting students’ health needs. In 2019 the foundation awarded a $7,600 Health Fund Grant that purchased a Vision Spot Screener for the Lexington District Nurses to use in testing students’ vision. The device was originally aimed at benefitting pre-K students, students with cognitive or developmental delays, and students with limited language or speech abilities. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the original device was used to its fullest extent to test the vision of countless Lexington District One students. Accordingly, in 2021 our Board of Directors awarded an additional Health Fund Grant of $25,500 to purchase three additional vision spot screeners and flash drives for all devices. This recent grant will enable the nursing teams to safely and efficiently test students’ vision in all areas of Lexington District One.