Four of Hopewell Valley’s brightest and most motivated graduating seniors received scholarships from the Hopewell Valley Education Foundation (HVEF) in recognition of their outstanding academic achievement and school and community contributions. The 2018 winners are Brandon Li, Ali Scraggier, and Mark Van Selous, who were awarded a $1,000 scholarship each in support of their higher education goals. Kathryn Genovesi won the $1,000 HVEF Claude A.R. Kagan Memorial Scholarship.
“We’re thrilled to extend our warmest congratulations to Brandon, Ali, Mark and Katie, who represent the best of what our strong public education system offers throughout the Hopewell Valley,” said HVEF board president Kevin Kuchinski. “Across the board, they demonstrated terrific accomplishments in the classroom, in athletics, in their personal interests and in their commitment to making our communities stronger and more vibrant. The Hopewell Valley Education Foundation is proud to support their future achievements in college and beyond.”
HVEF also is pleased to announce its 2018 spring grant awards, which support excellence and innovation across the Hopewell Valley Regional School District (HVRSD). A generous grant to HVEF from the Bristol Meyers Squibb Foundation has underwritten the cost of both of these innovative STEM education projects:
- Outdoor Learning Center Pond Feature– This $9,200 grant will support the creation of a pond landscape that is a central element of Bear Tavern Elementary School’s new Outdoor Learning Center. A team of Bear Tavern teachers and administrators led by third-grade teacher Betsy Finnegan envision an outdoor learning zone featuring native plants and waterscapes that allows students to observe, touch, make connections, collaborate and innovate. The pond and learning center will support curricula in life science, earth science, sustainability, language arts, math, social studies and more.
- Outdoor Weather Stations– A grant of $8426.05 will allow for the purchase and installation of outdoor weather stations that will inform teaching and learning across a variety of classes at all four HVRSD elementary schools. Led by third-grade teachers Susan Hammill of Stony Brook Elementary School and Michelle Hamilton of Hopewell Elementary School, the weather stations will allow K-5 students to develop key math and science skills such as taking measurements, making observations, detecting trends and patterns, formulating questions and collecting relevant weather data.
“These most recent funded projects reflect the innovative efforts that Hopewell Valley educators are adopting to keep our schools at the leading edge of teaching and learning,” said Kuchinski. “We are thrilled to support these creative initiatives that help our students grow and succeed in new ways and strengthen our outstanding schools.”
HVEF awards two cycles of grants per year. For information on funding opportunities and upcoming proposal deadlines, visit www.hvef.org/grants. Those who wish to support the excellence of Hopewell Valley schools are encouraged to support the work of the Foundation through its Power of 100 campaign (http://hvef.org/powerof100).
Hopewell Valley Education Foundation: The Hopewell Valley Education Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that raises funds for the Hopewell Valley Regional School District, located in central New Jersey.The district serves the students of Pennington Borough, Hopewell Borough and Hopewell Township. Funding provided by HVEF brings enrichment programs, curriculum, professional development, technology, and other programs to the school district – programs that help make the schools of Hopewell Valley outstanding and provide our students with a rich and diverse educational experience.
