The Eudora Schools Foundation (ESF) announced today that it awarded more than $46,000 to fund 29 innovative projects across Eudora Schools. This marks the largest amount ever awarded in a single year by ESF. These grants help teachers establish programs that enhance student learning and success. Since 2006, ESF has awarded over 280 grants totaling more than $298,000 in classroom educational initiatives.

“Every year, our educators bring forward ideas that show how deeply they know their students and how committed they are to creating meaningful learning experiences,” said Samantha Arredondo, ESF Board President. “These grants give teachers the opportunity to take a great idea and make it possible for their students. We are incredibly grateful to the donors and community partners whose generosity allows ESF to say yes to more of those ideas each year.”

The chosen projects will benefit students from preschool through 12th grade. Grants were awarded in the following amounts:

Eudora Early Learning Center $9,590

Elementary School $17,116.39

Eudora Middle School: $12,484.66

Eudora High School: $6,888.99

Individual school grants and award recipients are listed below:

Eudora Early Learning Center

• Helping Our Youngest Cardinals Grow and Thrive with ARIS: Building Communication, Independence, and Readiness – The Academic Readiness Intervention System (ARIS) will provide individualized learning materials and progress-monitoring tools for preschool students with autism and significant communication and learning needs. The program will help students build communication, independence, and foundational skills while supporting individualized instruction and IEP goals. Grant Recipients: Heather Hundley, Kristen Lewis, & Paxton Rienbolt.
• Play, Connect, Communicate – Engaging play materials will help preschool students develop communication and social skills in a sensory-friendly, supportive environment. Students will practice play skills individually with adults before building toward greater interaction, connection, and play with their peers. Grant Recipient: Tasha Flaherty.
• The Learning Lab Library: Shared Manipulatives for Literacy, Math, STEAM, and Sensory Discovery – Preschool and Pre-K classrooms will share a new collection of hands-on learning materials that teachers can check out and rotate among classrooms. The manipulatives will encourage students to explore literacy, math, STEAM, problem-solving, and creativity through sensory play, light tables, centers, and other hands-on activities. Grant Recipient: Rachel Whitten.

Eudora Elementary School

• Elevate the Game: 9 Square in the Air – Students will build movement, coordination, communication, and teamwork skills through 9 Square in the Air during Physical Education classes. The fast-paced game will provide an engaging new way for students to stay active while participating in friendly competition. Grant Recipient: Lynae Rebman.
• Yay! Yay! Yard Games! – A collection of outdoor yard games will expand opportunities for students to stay active during Physical Education classes. Students will practice skills such as tossing, aiming, teamwork, and strategy while enjoying movement and friendly competition outdoors. Grant Recipient: Lynae Rebman.
• The Life Skills Lab – A new Life Skills Lab will give students hands-on opportunities to practice practical everyday skills in a supportive school environment. Through real-world learning experiences, students will strengthen independence, functional communication, problem-solving, and confidence that can carry into the classroom, home, and community. Grant Recipients: Taylor Gillihan & Michele Fairchild.
• RISE to Learn: Expanding Learning Materials for Every Stage – Building on the success of previously funded ARIS materials, this project will expand learning resources for RISE students as they develop academic and functional skills. New materials will help students practice and apply those skills across different settings with greater independence and consistency. Grant Recipient: Erin Weinmaster.
• STEM Bins: Building Problem-Solvers – Students will explore science, technology, engineering, and math concepts through a collection of hands-on STEM Bins. Creative challenges and building materials will encourage students to experiment, problem-solve, and develop critical-thinking skills through active learning. Grant Recipient: Samantha Pattrick.
• Weight for Learning – Light hand weights will add purposeful movement to classroom brain breaks, helping students learn how physical activity can support focus and learning. Students will use short movement activities to pause, reset, and prepare their bodies and brains for their next learning task. Grant Recipient: Amber Jackson.
• Regulate and Listen – First-grade classrooms will receive sensory tools and resources designed to support focus, self-regulation, and active participation in learning. The materials will give students additional ways to manage sensory needs and help create classroom environments where they are ready to learn and engage. Grant Recipients: Jamie White, Stephanie Green, Sarajane Haney, Annie Hackworth, Beth Swanson, & Abby Schomig.
• Student Learning Through Sensory and Social-Emotional Supports – Sensory, movement, and social-emotional resources will help students regulate, focus, connect with others, and prepare for learning. Flexible seating, calming materials, hands-on activities, and other supports will give students practical tools for managing their individual needs throughout the school day. Grant Recipients: Christy Boyer & Jessica Robson.
• Strengthening Your Brain Through Chess – Students will learn chess through Story Time Chess, which combines stories and hands-on instruction to make the game accessible and engaging for young learners. Playing chess will help students strengthen critical-thinking, problem-solving, concentration, and decision-making skills. Grant Recipient: Barbie Grado.
• Growing Senses and More – An expanded school garden featuring a variety of herbs and bug houses will give students new opportunities to explore nature using all five senses. Students will touch, taste, smell, listen, and observe as they learn about plants, insects, and the natural world through hands-on experiences. Grant Recipient: Amber Jackson.
• Movement Matters: Building Skills Through Play– New play materials will provide students with opportunities to move, build, create, and collaborate during indoor recess and throughout the school day. Activities will support gross and fine motor development, self-regulation, problem-solving, STEM and engineering skills, while providing an inclusive play environment for general and special education students. Grant Recipient: Jordan Lorenzo.

Eudora Middle School

• In Real Life – An Independent Living Skills Lab will give middle school students hands-on experience with practical skills they will use throughout adulthood. Students will practice cooking, basic home and automotive maintenance, tool use, financial literacy, personal safety, and other everyday responsibilities while building confidence and independence. Grant Recipient: Mitch Tegtmeier.
• Literature in a Suitcase – “Mystery Suitcases” filled with objects connected to sixth-grade literature will bring classroom reading to life. Students will investigate the objects, make predictions, ask questions, and connect their discoveries to curriculum units ranging from Yellow Fever and Summer of the Mariposas to chocolate and Greek mythology. Grant Recipient: Heather Moore.
• 8th Grade Career Fair Project – Eighth-grade students will explore their strengths and interests through interactive career simulations before researching a career and becoming the experts themselves. Students will create displays and hands-on experiences for a student-led Career Fair, building career awareness, confidence, and communication skills as they share what they have learned with younger students. Grant Recipients: Michelle Plegge, Jaime Meyers, & Cherrie Ann Lindsey.
• LEGO Education Computer Science & AI – Students in grades 6–8 will explore computer science and artificial intelligence through LEGO Education kits that allow them to build, code, test, and solve challenges together. The hands-on experiences will make complex technology concepts accessible while strengthening creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. Grant Recipient: Carie Beth Russell.
• Write It. Design It. Publish It. A Sixth Grade Publishing Studio – Approximately 120 sixth-grade students will become published authors as they write, revise, illustrate, and design their own original books. The project will culminate in professionally printed books that students can share with younger peers while building writing skills, creativity, and confidence. Grant Recipient: Amy Giffin.
• Adaptive Biking – An adaptive tricycle will give students with varying abilities a safe and accessible opportunity to ride alongside their classmates. Students will build motor skills, independence, confidence, and enjoyment of physical activity through an experience designed to make biking more inclusive. Grant Recipient: Mitchell Tegtmeier.
• Finish and Flourish: Helping Early Finishers Turn Extra Time Into Opportunities to Learn! – Brain-building games and puzzles will turn extra classroom time into opportunities for meaningful enrichment. Students who finish their science work early can continue learning through problem-solving, critical thinking, and collaboration with their peers. Grant Recipient: Katie Hammerschmidt.
• The EMS Hive: Where Everyone Belongs – An underused outdoor courtyard will become an accessible, hands-on garden where middle school life skills students can learn and grow. The inclusive space will expand learning beyond the traditional classroom while providing students meaningful opportunities to participate, build skills, and experience success. Grant Recipients: Mandy Shockley, Nate Gomez, Andrew Gomez, Julie Cohorst, & Lexi Thorne.
• Tools for Life: Enhancing Autonomy and Motor Skills in Special Education – Hands-on task boxes will help students with special needs practice fine motor and everyday life skills through engaging, repeatable activities. Students will build confidence and greater independence as they practice completing real-world tasks on their own. Grant Recipient: Gretchen Reed.
• Cardinals Gather and Grow – RISE students and peer mentors will work side-by-side in the kitchen to cook, bake, and build friendships. Students will learn recipes, kitchen safety, and independent living skills while sharing their creations with the school through treats prepared for school events. Grant Recipients: Mandy Shockley, Nate Gomez, Andrew Gomez, Julie Cohorst, & Lexi Thorne.

Eudora High School

• Cardinal Outdoor Recreation & Enrichment – An underused outdoor courtyard will be transformed into an engaging space where students can connect, move, and enjoy screen-free recreation during lunch, before school, advisory, Physical Education, and other supervised enrichment time. A shared collection of weather-resistant games including Spikeball, KanJam, ladder golf, cornhole, and giant checkers and chess will encourage movement, teamwork, and positive use of unstructured time while being available for shared use across Eudora High School. Grant Recipients: Sean Hayden & Scott Russell.
• Meta Glasses! – Students in Cardinal Productions and Cardinal Relations will experiment with Meta smart glasses to capture point-of-view video for storytelling projects. The wearable cameras will give students a new way to create first-person content and explore emerging media tools. Grant Recipient: Nate Robinson.
• Classroom Wireless Buzzer System – A wireless buzzer system will bring an interactive, game-show-style element to Social Studies classes through review activities, classroom games, and team competitions. Students will have a fun, hands-on way to participate, test their knowledge, and engage in friendly competition while reinforcing classroom learning. Grant Recipient: Chris Dunback.
• Electrorally Motor – Students will launch a new EHS club centered around building and racing an electric go-kart. Grant funding will provide the vehicle’s electric motor, giving students a critical component needed to build the remaining kart with donated materials and available supplies while gaining hands-on experience along the way. Grant Recipient: Barbie Grado.
• S&C Holistic Evaluation – New sprint-timing technology will help more than 200 Strength & Conditioning students each semester measure speed and change-of-direction performance, set individualized goals, and track their growth over time. The equipment will complement existing performance technology in the weight room and will also be available to Eudora coaches for team-specific performance testing. Grant Recipient: Scott Russell.