Mini-Grant Teacher Program
Wantagh Foundation for Educational Excellence
Congratulations to our 2022-2023
Teacher Grant Recipients!
The Wantagh Foundation for Educational Excellence has helped fund and support grants for Teacher driven initiatives/programs.
Congratulations teachers and thank you for all you do for our students!
Wantagh Middle School
Congratulations to Ms. Bellucci, for receiving a Wantagh Foundation Teacher Grant for a new digital microscope! This generous grant will enable Ms. Belluci to continue inspiring her students with their knowledge and enthusiasm for science. We are delighted to be able to witness the joy that this grant brings to our school, and we look forward to seeing the amazing discoveries and group learning collaborations made with the new microscope!
Mandalay Elementary School
Ms. Clarke (formerly Megargel) teaches one of the 6:1+1 self-contained classes at Mandalay Elementary School. The foundation is proud to support her new social skills program for students in our 6:1:1 classes at Mandalay Elementary, Peer Buddies! Students will meet with their Peer Buddies to engage in facilitated social and academic events, such as playing board games, cooking, themed crafts, STEAM activities, and more. Peer Buddies is a unique reverse mainstreaming opportunity (general education students coming into the self-contained classroom) to participate in various lessons and activities. The Peer Buddies program promotes acceptance and inclusion!
Mandalay Elementary School
Ms. Joyce is a fourth-grade teacher at Mandalay Elementary. This grant will fund a virtual field trip with CUNO: Columbia University Neuroscience Outreach for the fourth-grade class. This will teach and show students the structure, function, and information processing outlining the parts of the brain cells and how they communicate with the rest of the body. CUNO will plan a variety of activities/centers in which they will allow the students to have a hands-on experience learning from real-life neuroscientists.
Forest Lake Elementary
Ms. Sottnik joined the Wantagh faculty this September as a 2nd Grade teacher in Forest Lake. This grant will support the Reader Workshop curriculum and classroom library. The goal is to capture the student's interest and help them grow in their reading. The hope is that this library will excite our little learners and help them become stronger readers.
Wantagh Elementary Schools
Ms. Tundo is an elementary teacher at Wantagh El. The foundation is happy to help her purchase “Book Creator” a technology-based program that allows students to design their own books. They can use a variety of templates and designs to publish their own books.
Wantagh Middle School
Ms. Paladino has been a teacher at the Wantagh Middle School for 18 years. This initiative will further engage and reach all algebra learners. The foundation will purchase X-Y coordinate plane pegboards providing her class with a hands-on visual model for graphing linear equations.
Wantagh High School
Ms. Sebastiano has been teaching science at Wantagh High School for 21 years. The foundation is looking to fund her field trip at no cost to her students. Her project is a field trip for my AP Biology students to attend the prestigious Dolan DNA Learning Center and complete a laboratory activity where they get to analyze a portion of their own DNA. Students will prepare a sample of their own DNA from cells obtained by saline mouthwash. After amplification by PCR, the improved size resolution of a DNA chip allows students to identify their genotype, something impossible with traditional agarose gel electrophoresis."