Patricia Garcia Likens
SRP Media Relations

July 23, 2009

MEDIA ADVISORY

"Learning Grants by SRP" funds innovative school programs

Grants strengthen math, science and technology curricula in six counties

High school students will build a car of the future that will get 100 miles per gallon, middle school students will learn about math and science while growing and caring for a plant habitat and elementary school students will explore Mars. These are just a few examples of the Learning Grants by SRP awarded to 29 schools throughout the state by Salt River Project. The grants total more than $125,000 impacting hundreds of students in schools in Maricopa, Pinal, Yavapai, Apache, Coconino and Gila counties.

The Learning Grants by SRP program provides funding for individual projects, programs and activities that promote student achievement in state-mandated competencies in math, science and/or technology for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.

Winning proposals for the 2009-2010 school year include:

  1. Thunder Mountain Middle School, (Apache Junction) - $4,945: Students will benefit from the improvement of a school habitat that will allow hands-on learning with Arizona native plants. The habitat and creation of a Butterfly Garden will give students access to tools that will lead to inquiry and problem solving.
  2. Casa Verde High School (Casa Grande) - $4,973: The school's Environmental Inquiry class will focus on energy and conservation, develop an understanding of energy transfer versus energy storage, and non-renewable and renewable energy sources.
  3. Frye Elementary School (Chandler) - $5,000: The grant will assist in the expansion of the Frye Math Resource Library, which will feature math kits with lessons and materials. Teachers, parents, and community members can check out the kits to use as a resource.
  4. Hamilton High School (Chandler) - $5,000: The Independent Authentic Student Science Research class will participate in the Hamilton Invitational Science and Engineering Fair and conduct authentic research projects from idea to research and presentation.
  5. Chino Valley High School (Chino Valley) - $4,908: Students in the biotechnology program will learn more about DNA samples through the purchase of a thermal cycler (PCR-Polymerase Chain Reaction). Current topics such as heredity, genetically modified organisms and forensic science will be explored.
  6. Concho Elementary (Concho) - $5,000: Students will bring inquiry learning to life in a sustainable greenhouse and garden. Based on Arizona Science standards, every student will be able to experience inquiry in a vital living classroom.
  7. Fountain Hills High School (Fountain Hills) - $5,000: As part of a STEM initiative, the school's Research Club will build a car that will get 100 miles per gallon. The vehicle was recently accepted into the Progressive Automotive X-Prize, one of only two high school project cars in the nation to qualify for this prestigious international competition.
  8. McDowell Mountain Elementary (Fountain Hills) - $4,000: Students will develop science concepts and literacy skills by using literature to aid in the inquiry process. Fiction and nonfiction books will be used to engage students in the questioning process while promoting research.
  9. Burk Elementary School (Gilbert) - $2,100: Students in the Intermediate Math and Language Arts Accelerated Learning Program will participate in a variety of STEM Activities, including the following: Career Exploration in Science and Engineering, Star Lab Presentations, Challenger Space Center Voyage to Mars Mission, Future City Project, Model Rocketry, Sally Ride Festival, and Virtual Classroom.
  10. SanTan Learning Center (Gilbert) - $5,000: Students will participate in a series of hands-on units and activities including field experiences which will serve as a catalyst for a school-wide focus on science and math innovation.
  11. Desert Mirage Elementary School (Glendale) - $4,258: Third and sixth-grade students will conduct hands-on experiments to learn about renewable resources, forms of energy, and the transfer of energy in physical science. Older students will mentor the younger students and will benefit from the Renewable Energy after-school program.
  12. Peralta Trail Elementary School (Gold Canyon) - $4,945: The schoolyard habitat will be expanded to include an observatory complete with telescope and Internet access for students and teachers to be able to monitor the skies and use as a learning tool throughout the year.
  13. Cesar Chavez High School (Laveen) - $5,000: The school's Science and Technology team will participate in the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Tech Challenge, the FIRST Robotics Competition, and sponsor/mentor two teams in the FIRST Lego League. The FIRST Robotics competition is a competition in which students work alongside engineers to design, construct, program, test, and improve a robot using the latest engineering components.
  14. Maricopa High School (Maricopa) - $5,000: Biology students will participate in a biotechnology unit concerning water purification and pollution entitled "What's in your water? Using Biotechnology to Explore Water."
  15. Dobson and Westwood Agriscience Program (Mesa) - $4,922: Students will tissue culture plants grown for food and aesthetics and compare tissue culture methods using controlled investigations. The goal of this project is to link classroom learning to real world application of biotechnology and agriscience principles through hands-on activities.
  16. Highland Junior High School (Mesa) - $500: Students will apply their knowledge of physics while learning about real-life engineering challenges. Students will apply physics and math concepts to bring the "theoretical" to a "real life" situation.
  17. Mesa High-Biotech Academy (Mesa) - $4,998: Students will use hands-on materials to create science fair projects related to biology and biotechnology. Also, teachers will visit schools in Beijing and Xian, China, to educate teachers about the program.
  18. St. Timothy Catholic School (Mesa) - $5,000: Middle school students will participate in hands-on learning experiences in a mobile science lab consisting of a demonstration table on wheels, 13 student microscopes and experiment equipment.
  19. Page High School (Page) - $4,850: The school's Engineering/Physics class will design and fabricate a photovoltaic solar panel array, which will be connected to the existing solar array/electric car-charging facility previously funded by Learning Grants by SRP.
  20. Payson High School (Payson) - $4,094: Students will perform water quality assessments and a riparian area study on the East Verde River. The project will provide longitudinal data relating the rate of water flow to water quality factors.
  21. Amberlea Elementary School (Phoenix), $2,312: Seventh and eighth-grade gifted students will plan a city on a distant planet that would be able to support life utilizing skills in life science, physical science, technology, math and engineering.
  22. Arcadia High School (Phoenix) - $5,000: Eighth-grade students from the high school, Ingleside Middle and the Arcadia Neighborhood Learning Center will participate in DNA labs, the National DNA Day Essay Contest, the National Biodreaming poster contest and career exploration activities to highlight bioscience and STEM careers.
  23. Arizona Cardinals Preparatory Academy (Phoenix) - $4,996: Students will explore the ecosystem of the Rio Salado Restoration Project in central Phoenix including riparian plant and animal life, avian life and aquatic organisms.
  24. Papago Elementary School (Phoenix) - $4,984: Fourth-grade students will participate in a hands-on, inquiry-based, science curriculum concerning energy and renewable resources. They will build wind turbines and visit the local hydroelectric facility, Arizona Falls.
  25. Rimrock Public High School (Rimrock) - $2,194: Students will assess the Beaver Creek ecosystem in the town of Rimrock/Lake Montezuma by collecting water samples above and below the town. The samples, which will be analyzed for pollutants, mineral concentration and dissolved oxygen content, will be used to determine if the community has an effect on the creek's ecosystem.
  26. Salt River High School (Scottsdale) - $5,000: The biotechnology program will be enhanced and expanded through the acquisition of needed equipment and furniture which will enable hands-on inquiry for students.
  27. Fees Middle School (Tempe) - $1,557: In order to have a better understanding of energy, students will engage in renewable energy research. The project will result in students having a better understanding of how energy is generated, stored and transferred.
  28. Marcos De Niza High School (Tempe) - $5,000: The Robotics Team 2449 works in collaboration with James Madison Preparatory and is officially constituted under the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics organization. The FIRST program will enable students to solve real-world problems through the application of math, science and technology.
  29. Country Place Elementary School (Tolleson) - $4,981: The grant will allow the school to expand the robotics program to include younger students, add the study of alternative renewable resources to the upper grades, and introduce the exploration of force and motion through rocketry in the science club and gifted education.

As an active member of the community, SRP contributes more than $1.3 million annually to educational programs throughout Arizona. In addition SRP has been named a recipient of one of the world's highest and most distinguished awards for community and volunteer service, the Award for Excellence in Workplace Volunteer Programs for 2007 from the Washington, D.C.-based Points of Light Foundation. SRP was also awarded this honor in 2000.

For more information, visit SRP Classroom Connections.

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