Grants Awarded 2026 – 2027
Development and Enrichment Grants
From Classroom to Capitol: Growing Kentucky’s Next Generation of Leaders —Heidi Mallory
The grant will provide travel fund support for students attending the Kentucky Youth
Assembly, a statewide civic engagement program that gives middle students the opportunity to experience the legislative process firsthand. Through the program/class, students research issues, write bills, and participate in mock legislative sessions where they debate, amend, and vote on proposed legislation in a setting that mirrors the operations of the Kentucky General Assembly.
A Voice for All — Dionna Johnson
Funds were renewed for a project approved in 2025-2026
Mark Schmidt Technology Award
Mechelle Morgan—Expanding Access to STEAM Learning
This project will update the district’s STEAM equipment library with new, hands-on tools that
support coding, engineering, and problem-solving. The initiative will provide equitable access
for K-12 students while supporting teachers.
Ronald W. Churchill Grant
Shelley Stubblefield—Career Discovery Labs: Building Future-Ready Skills in Grades 4-5
The grant will provide seed money for a project to introduce 4th-5th grade students to hands-on career exploration through Paxton/Patterson Career Discovery Labs, fostering practical problem-solving skills and preparing students for future CTE pathways.
Mini-Grants
Murray Elementary School
Drama Club-Morgan Workman
The MES Drama Club fosters creativity, confidence, and collaboration by giving students opportunities to explore theater through performance and production. Through engaging rehearsals and school performances, students build communication skills, teamwork, and a strong sense of community. Grant funding supports licensing costs that bring student storytelling to life and make the arts accessible to all participants.
Novel Effect-Amberly Munsey
Novel Effect is an interactive reading app that enhances read-aloud experiences by adding music, sound effects, and ambient audio that respond to a reader’s voice in real time. As a book is read aloud, the app listens to the voice and automatically adds sounds that match the story without requiring buttons or manual control. It is designed to make reading more immersive and engaging by capturing students’ attention, supporting comprehension, and creating a more dynamic storytelling experience.
Teacher Trading Cards-Morgan Workman
The staff chooses a favorite book to create personalized baseball-style trading cards for kids to collect. Earning and collecting trading cards incentivizes reading across all grade levels and builds community between students and staff based on a common love for literacy.
STREAM: Designing and Creating Together-Courtney Vanover
The MES STEAM class is designed to give children an opportunity to create, communicate, collaborate, solve problems, and set goals. These skills are observed when students are given a choice with hands-on materials during discovery zones.
One Book, One School-Megan Kindle
One Book, One School is an exciting read-aloud project in which every teacher reads the same text across all classrooms. The book chosen is engaging for grades K-3. This project promotes a love of literacy and strengthens the reading community in our school.
Let’s Glow-Shauna Traylor
Elementary Physical Education brings joy and excitement to all students, how could we make P.E. even more engaging and fun? Let the gym GLOW! Using black lights, disco lights, glow tape and necklaces will make the gym come to life for different occasions throughout the school year in the gym. This is not only for PE class but for AR Reward Parties, after school events and more!
Murray High School
Sensory Regulation Supports to Improve Engagement in LBD Classroom-Emily Gooch
Students in the high school Learning and Behavior Disabilities (LBD) classroom frequently experience difficulty with emotional regulation, attention, and sensory processing which can interfere with learning. This project will provide targeted sensory regulation tools to help students manage stress, improve focus, and increase time on-task. By addressing sensory needs proactively, students will be better able to access instruction and engage in the classroom environment.
Math Medic to the Rescue!-Sarah Hultman
Math Medic’s philosophy is to “Experience First, Formalize Later”. This is an outstanding method for teaching advanced mathematics concepts, especially difficult topics in AP Statistics. If students can make real-world connections between concepts, their learning will be more substantial. Using Math Medic’s assessment platform allows me to tailor homework, quizzes, and tests to the needs of my classroom, while still being in line with the Math Medic philosophy.
Community Cart: Rolling Conversations, Building Connection-Sarah Hultman
This project will strengthen school-wide relationships and classroom culture by creating intentional, student-led opportunities for conversation, connection, and belonging. Through a mobile “Community Cart,” students will engage in weekly low-pressure interactions that build communication skills, peer relationships, and a more inclusive school environment.
Zen Den Supplies-Gillian Miller Sullivan
Our students desperately need a space where they can relax, decompress, and prepare for the day. I am proposing that we turn an unused space in MHS into a Zen Den where students can gather in the morning in a peaceful and calm environment. The space can also be used by adults in the building for their own sanity throughout the day.
Expanding Access and Engagement in AP Calculus ABThrough Math Medic-Haley Burchett
This mini-grant supports the professional growth goal of expanding knowledge and effective use of high-quality instructional resources. By integrating the Math Medic AP Calculus AB curriculum into my classroom, I will strengthen conceptual understanding, increase student engagement, and enhance alignment with AP standards.
Interpretation Station-Michael Robinson
Interpretation Station will provide high school speech students with a curated collection of engaging, age-appropriate literary works for performance. By expanding access to high-quality stories, poetry, and prose, this project will foster student creativity, confidence, and success in competition.
Murray Middle School
Unplug and Connect-Hannah Stark
Students spend much of their day on screens, leaving fewer chances to connect with one another. This grant will support simple, screen-free activities—games, art, and building materials—that help students relax, build friendships, and practice healthy social-emotional skills. These moments of unplugged connection create a calmer classroom and a stronger sense of belonging for every student.
Reading Passport-Hanan Bickelman
The Reading Passports project encourages students to read independently at home and at school by transforming traditional reading logs into interactive “passports.” Students track their reading while exploring texts connected to different cultures, increasing motivation, literacy engagement, and global awareness.
Mobile Reading Stations-Hanan Bickelman
The Mobile Reading Stations project will provide rotating, hands-on literacy centers using rolling carts stocked with targeted reading materials and manipulatives. These stations will support small-group instruction and differentiated learning, increasing student engagement and literacy skill development.
Vertical Non-Permanent Work Surfaces for Fourth Grade Math-Kayla Boward
Implementing vertical work surfaces, such as whiteboards, allows students to engage in “visible thinking” where their problem-solving process is easily shared & discussed. Research suggests that standing while working increases student engagement & persistence, as the non-permanent nature of the surface reduces the fear of making mistakes. This collaborative setup transforms the classroom into a dynamic environment where teachers can provide immediate, real-time feedback by scanning the room.
MMS STEM Club-Melissa Durham
The MMS STEM Club will engage students in monthly hands-on STEM challenges. Students will focus on all aspects of STEM as they design, build, test, and work to improve solutions through various activities. The STEM Club will focus on problem-solving, collaboration, and real-world STEM applications.
3D Printing for Future Ready Math Thinking-Tamsyn Vertrees
Seventh grade students at MMS will get hands-on engineering and real-life math experience with designing, re-designing, measuring, scaling, and tinkering with a classroom 3D printer. Students will get to experience bringing their geometric ideas to life. Designing and printing 3D figures will help them consider surface area, volume, angles, measurements, and structural stability, while also teaching them a growth mindset and design skills they can list on their resume.
Drama Club-Emily Parker
The Drama Club at MMS is able to enhance the theatrical experience for the students. The grant will help us to provide the materials needed for our cast to expand their creativity, collaboration and growth on stage. These social skills are beneficial for all students as they can transfer over into real life situations as they get older and advance in life.
Flexible Seating for Math Engagement-Tamsyn Vertrees
Seventh grade students at MMS will have more flexible seating in the math classroom to promote student engagement and student choice. Students will see and experience a classroom set up that looks relaxing and suited to their needs. By giving students more seating options, they can cater to their learning preferences and work the way that is best for them. Flexible seating options will include standing tables, stools, floor cushions, and ottomans.
Creative Minds, Strong Hearts-Laken Eckert
A program designed to support the social emotional well being of students through creative expression, where students can explore emotions, build coping skills, and develop positive self expression through art, journaling, and group activities. Students in after-school settings often experience stress, behavioral challenges, and difficulty expressing emotions appropriately. This program addresses those needs by integrating wellness practices with creative outlets, ultimately improving behavior, engagement, and overall student well being during school and after.
Speaking Volumes-Michael Robinson
Speaking Volumes will provide middle school speech students with a curated collection of engaging, age-appropriate literary works for performance. By expanding access to high-quality stories, poetry, and prose, this project will foster student creativity, confidence, and success in competition.
Murray Preschool-Willis Center
“I Need a Break”-Katie Williams
Students sometimes need a space to take a break and become regulated, even in the preschool setting. Some students need sensory experiences (sight, sound, vestibular, tactile) to assist in regulation. By providing a ‘break’ or sensory room, preschool students will learn two important skills. The students will be taught how to use a sensory room to help them calm down in an appropriate way. Students will use the sensory room on a routine schedule. Then students will learn how to indicate that they need a break (verbal, sign, picture), when they become overstimulated.