The Lawrence Township Education Foundation awarded more than $44,000 to 13 programs in Lawrence Township Public Schools, which completed its spring 2013 grant cycle.
District teachers submitted grants for programs in a range of disciplines including science, language, reading, speech therapy, and professional development. At the April Board of Education meeting, LTEF awarded more than 40 faculty and staff grants.
A grant awarded to Lawrence High School will allow faculty and staff to award academic exellence and school citizenship through the implementation of Program Renaissance.
LHS is set to use grants to purchase an oval Harkness-style table to use in place of traditional desks in humanities classes. Teachers hope sitting around a table will encourage student-teacher collaboration and engagement.
Additionally, the school is set to use grants to buy webcams for students who study American Sign Language and support students attending the DECA International Career Development Conference.
Lawrence Intermediate School, is set to aid students learning the touch typing by implementing keyboard hiders in the technology lab. Also, students in need of academic support instruction will soon have iPads along with software resources to assist them with learning.
Lawrence Middle School students will soon experience WLMS: TV “on the move” with the purchase of equipment for a portable TV studio that will include cross-house programming for school-wide activities.
As a continuation of Ben Franklin Elementary School’s ongoing “green” efforts, grants are to be used to purchase environmentally-friendly lunch trays made from biodegradable materials. Also the school plans to purchase CD-ROM software to use with their existing SmartBoards.
Other funded programs include enrichment materials and resources to strengthen student thinking skills at all elementary schools, an online subscription to help improve speech and language of students at Slackwood Elementary School, professional development for AP Spanish and responsive classroom design training to maximize classroom instruction for all elementary students.
LTEF is a nonprofit organization that aims to fosters educational excellence, creativity, and achievement in the Lawrence Township Public Schools. Since 1992, it has funded more than 500 programs with grants in excess of $2.6 million.
More information is online at ltefnj.org.

,