Fall 2019 Grant-funded Projects

In December 2019 DPSF announced its second round of grants - providing over $45,000 to 25 student, educator and parent-led projects across Durham Public Schools.

Read below to see the types of innovative projects being led by DPS students, educators and families!

Educator Grants

Hillandale Full STEAM Ahead, Hillandale Elementary

$1,000 

This grant will support kindergarten teachers in better integrating science curriculum into elementary schools. Through this practice, students will be allowed to have more hands-on experiences to develop necessary critical thinking skills through STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) activities. 


Resource Center for Spanish speaking Parents and Families, Eastway Elementary School

$2,000

Eastway seeks to create a school that embraces all families as a part of the community. This grant will support the creation of a resource center for spanish-speaking students and community members through language interpretation technology and other free, accessible resources. The resource center aims to be a safe space where the needs and voices of Spanish-speaking students can be met and engaged in the community. 


Boys 2 Men Mentoring Program, Fayetteville Street Elementary School 

$2,000

Fayetteville Street Elementary School serves students located in a low-income community. This grant will support the Boys 2 Men mentoring programming in providing leadership development for young, Black men, from grades 3-5. The program is designed to build confidence and self-esteem in young men  in order to increase and sustain academic performance. 


Deepening Equity Work, Easley Elementary School

$4,000

Easley Elementary School is continuing its equity work. This grant will support The Equity Collaborative in deepinging and sustaining equity coaching and training for educational workers. This program not only hopes to support education for teachers, but increase support for students of color and other marginalized students. 


Coaching for Innovation: Learning at NCTIES, E.K. Powe Elementary, Lakewood Elementary & Southwest Elementary

$630

This grant will support a group of teachers and learning coaches from three elementary schools Durham, NC, in attending the North Carolina Technology In Education Society (NCTIES) annual conference. The conference will support educational workers in learning best practices for integrating technology and digital tools into curriculum in order to best engage students in essential processes affecting their learning.


PBIS; Programming to engage students in the alternative setting, Lakeview School

$1,000

The PBIS program at Lakeview School seeks to develop a positive school environment for students grades 6-10 through increasing attendance, decreasing discipline referrals, effectively using the Restorative Practice Center, and increasing school safety. This grant will support PBIS staff and students by funding weekly incentives, celebratory events, monthly assemblies, and a school store.


Restorative Practices Coordinator Licensure, The School for Creative Studies

$1,000

This grant will fund the completion of a “Train the Trainer” course sponsored by the International Institute for Restorative Practices at the School for Creative Studies. The course provides certification for one coordinator to train others within the school on restorative practices with the goals of reducing suspensions, improving remediation, and changing the school’s culture toward discipline approaches. 


DPS Latinx Professional Learning Network, Northern High School

$1,000

This grant will support the continuation of monthly meetings of the DPS Latinx Professional Learning Network, a professional development program for DPS Latinx employees. Meetings include team building, guest speakers, article reviews, and relationship-building across the district.


Making Hillside a Multilingual Space, Hillside High School

$1,000

This grant will fund Multilingual Capacity Building Professional Development opportunities for lead teachers, administrators, counselors, and office staff at Hillside High School. The program seeks to identify and reduce language barriers at school through developing an inclusive and welcoming teaching and learning environment for all students and educators.


Sparking 4th Grade Science: Electricity, All 30 DPS elementary schools

$1,500

DPS elementary schools intend to increase teacher content knowledge and confidence in leading hands-on, inquiry-based learning experiences in elementary science. This grant will provide a half-day professional development workshop for 4th grade teachers focused on electricity. Teachers will have an opportunity to develop an understanding of science concepts by engaging in the process of inquiry-based instruction, leading to reflection on how to implement the same activities in the elementary classroom to foster student science learning.


Break room to destress, Southwest Elementary

$2,000

This grant will support the creation of a break/calming room for students experiencing overstimulation in the classroom in order to de-escalate situations and promote emotional regulation. Calming rooms are positive spaces meant to encourage and reward students for noticing when they are feeling upset and develop strategies to calm and self-soothe. The room will feature a low-stimulation environment of weighted blankets, dim lights, calming noises, a squishy floor, bubble lights, and objects to help with calming.


Using Technology to Support Riverside's SMART Lunch Intervention Period, Riverside High School

$3,000

Riverside High School seeks to transition the paper tracking system of their SMART lunch program to a technology app in order to digitally manage and monitor student progress in the program. This grant will train faculty on using the app in order to enhance connection with students and parents and to develop better procedures for scheduling tutoring, clubs, and enrichment opportunities.


Advancing Advisory at JHS, Jordan High School

$4,000

JHS is working to support students’ social-emotional learning by developing an advisory program. This grant will help provide training in restorative practices, community building, and equity in order to best serve the school’s student body. The advisory program will create a space for staff and students to build relationships, foster community, and discuss important school issues. 



Student Experience Grants

Life Ready!, Northern High School

$2,000

This program will provide college and career development services for underserved first-generation college bound students at Northern High School. The grant will allow students to participate in activities such as college tours, reflect on future career and college choices, visit IBM, practice filling out mock college applications and FAFSA, and develop networking skills.


Neal Student Leadership Team: Increasing Student Voice and Choice, Neal Middle School

$2,000

This grant will support student leadership development opportunities for 8th graders at Neal Middle School as a means to empower student voice and choice. Student leaders will participate in weekly meetings, field trips, community outreach events, and the development and implementation of student-led action projects. 


W.E. FLOW, City of Medicine Academy 

$2,000

This grant will support the Women’s Empowerment Club at City of Medicine Academy in their efforts to provide easy access to menstrual hygiene products at school. The goals of the project are to decrease stigma around menstruation, build confidence, and start a conversation around open-mindedness and inclusivity when talking about menstruation.


JHS Black Student Union Tours DC, Jordan High School

$750

This grant will support Jordan High School’s Black Student Union’s visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C. The trip will allow students the opportunity to enhance cultural understanding, empower student voices, and build relationships amongst student union members.


Latinx Unidos, City of Medicine Academy

$1,500

This grant will support the student-led club of Latinx Unidos in their efforts to expand awareness around the needs of the Hispanic/Latino community and issues in minority populations. The club hopes to increase advocacy efforts, implement more trainings, and develop resources for students and the broader community.


Youth Mental Health Retreat, Northern, Riverside, Hillside, Jordan, City of Medicine Academy & Middle College

$2,000

This grant will fund a youth mental health retreat for the Jovenes Lideres en Accion (JLA, Youth Leaders in Action), a Hispanic/Latino student group open to all students in Durham Public Schools. The retreat will focus on mental health awareness, defining healthy relationships, social justice issues, event organizing, and facilitation skills. 


Industry Greenhouse for Outdoor Learning Space, Carrington Middle School

$2,500

Carrington Middle School will be using this grant to launch the design and construction of a greenhouse and outdoor learning space. The greenhouse will support students in their development of skills such as plant propagation, greenhouse management, seed germination, soil classification, water testing, and plant identification. The goal of the greenhouse is to serve as a learning facility for students to garner real-world green industry experience, technical education skills, and career readiness.


YES- Young Ladies Educated and Successful, Eno Valley

$2,500

YLOE is an after school intervention designed to celebrate, nurture and clarify the complex identity of young women, while monitoring and serving their academic and developmental needs. This grant will support the program’s ongoing efforts to foster academic success, develop female leaders, and enhance social skills as students progress through middle school.


To The Zoo We Go!, Burton Elementary School

$2,500

This grant will fund a trip to the North Carolina Zoo for all students at Burton Elementary School. The visit will serve as an engaging learning activity about animals and animal needs, environmental issues, and relationship-building amongst students and teachers.


Jordan Falcons Meet Gallaudet Bison, Jordan High School, Rogers Herr Middle School

$2,500

This grant will fund a trip to the historic Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and hearing students and teachers at Jordan High School and Rogers Herr Middle School. The trip will engage students in the history of D/HH education, D/HH culture, foster relationships, and support students in envisioning their futures within higher education.



Parent/Community Grants

Making Family Involvement Accessible for ELLs, Hillside High School

$250

Families of English Language Learners are underrepresented in Hillside’s PTA and school events; this grant will increase family involvement of Hillside High School’s English Language Learners through a series of ESL Family Nights. Each event at ESL Family Nights will focus on topics such as community resources, academic resources, and how to get involved in the PTA.


Parent Teacher Conference Block Party, Spring Valley Elementary School

$1,500

The Parent Teacher Conference Block Party seeks to increase equity in parent knowledge of student performance within the Pendleton community. The conference is an opportunity for parents to build relationships with their student’s teachers, discuss academic concerns and successes, gain resources, and connect and engage with the broader school community.