LTEF Funds Twelve Programs

The climbing team at Lawrence High School received LTEF funds in 2004 to install an indoor climbing wall that has been a huge hit with students and teachers alike.

The Lawrence Township Education Foundation (LTEF) is always on the lookout for good ideas. And the teachers in Lawrence public schools just keep coming up with them. This Spring, twelve of those ideas found funding from the local education foundation, which is contributing $50,000 to make those ideas a reality.

As always, the grant requests cover a range of curriculum areas and touch students in all seven district schools. This year, for the first time, those funds reach down into the pre-K level. Two of the grants, "Play with a Purpose" and "Pre-K on the Go", bring enrichment materials to five preschool classrooms that are soon to be in operation all over the township. The district recently received an ELLI (Early Launch to Learning Initiative) grant that provides an opportunity for 90 children in the township to have access to quality preschool. The LTEF is pleased to enhance those classrooms with motor skill stations, multi-sensory equipment and manipulatives.

The Education Foundation is also continuing its commitment to early literacy in Lawrence Schools. Following up on past efforts, this spring's grants provide teacher training in early literacy and new classroom materials for learning disabled students. "Literacy Through Listening", a grant at Lawrence Intermediate School, will address the needs of different learners by providing audio versions of books the students read as part of their Language Arts curriculum.

LTEF is also excited to bring state-of-the art equipment to Middle School science and health classrooms. Students will soon have handheld computers and science probes that will let them take their explorations of motion, humidity, pH, temperature, oxygen levels and heart rate out of the classroom and allow for sophisticated manipulation of data.

Other grants bring character education team-building equipment to LIS in support of the school's Character Kick-Off Day, provide support for an organization bringing together Eastern European students at LHS, and fund high school students' participation in a service learning project at the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp and the Young Advisory Council of Teen Institute of the Garden State. Another project will create a lending library of occupational therapy assistive devices to help Ben Franklin and LES students achieve in the classroom setting. Ben Franklin will also receive funds for a "Masterpiece of the Month" program that will weave art into the curriculum.

The Lawrence Township Education Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that works to foster educational excellence, creativity and achievement in the Lawrence Township Public Schools. Since 1992, the organization has contributed over $1.3 million to support 230 programs and projects. For more information, call 219-0340 or email info@ltefnj.org.