TERRE HAUTE —
In an emotional moment, Catherine Hill walked up to the Sarah Scott Middle School stage to present a grant award named in honor of her late son, Rodney, who was killed in a February 2011 house fire.
She presented the Rodney Hill Memorial award, given by the Vigo County Education Foundation, to John W. Petty, an English teacher at Terre Haute North Vigo High School.
The funds will be used for the school’s Northern Reflections Literary Magazine, which showcases creative writing.
Hill’s son, who attended and graduated from Vigo County schools, liked to write poetry. “He inspired a lot of people,” she said after the Vigo County Education Foundation grant presentations Wednesday.
Commenting on the memorial grant award, Catherine Hill said, “I think it’s an honor that his name will live on” and the grant will benefit other students who like to write.
She works in the Vigo County School Corp. administration building.
During the awards program, she thanked co-workers and Superintendent Dan Tanoos for making the memorial award possible. “I thank you all and I love you all,” Hill said.
The Vigo County Education Foundation awarded 94 mini-grants totaling $63,107 Wednesday. The grants are for classroom enrichment opportunities.
“All of these mini-grants are made for $750 or less, and it is amazing to see what great teachers are able to accomplish with that amount of money,” said Jenny Thomas, VCEF executive director.
The awards are requested by teachers throughout the school corporation, to be used to enhance learning opportunities for students.
During the presentation, Bart Colwell, VCEF board vice president, told teachers, “You have the most important job in the world and we appreciate your efforts and your passion for education and your passion for children.”
Among the many grant recipients was Rebecca Boehler, a second-grade teacher at DeVaney Elementary, who received a $750 grant for a program called “Meet My Family: A monthly family involvement activity.”
Jane Linville, a retired teacher, helps sponsor the grant, which Boehler has received for several years.
Activities occur every month during or after school and include bowling, research projects and a year-end celebration.
The project aims to “get parents involved and when you get parents involved, it makes a world of difference in the classroom,” Boehler said.
Several South Vigo technology teachers received grants, including a $750 grant for the Super Mileage Challenge. Earlier this year, a South Vigo team earned first place in the “unlimited class” category during the 17th Super Mileage Challenge in Indianapolis.
The goal of the Challenge is to involve students in the research, design, fundraising, problem solving, fabrication and testing of a car to see how many miles per gallon their car is able to achieve.
Gregg Dillion, the team’s faculty sponsor last year and this year, said the $750 Education Foundation grant is important.
“That’s our single largest source of money” for the project, he said. The funds help pay for such things as materials, registration and an engine.
“This is huge. It’s almost one third of what we spent last year,” Dillion said.
The Education Foundation is a private 501c3 organization.
Since 1984, the Foundation has given more than $1.2 million to schools and programs within the Vigo County School Corp.
Sue Loughlin can be reached at (812) 231-4235 or sue.loughlin@tribstar.com.
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