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Arthur Orr’s Classroom Grants Give Teachers Momentum for Change

Charles Dickens once wrote, “A very little key will open a very heavy door.” Our teachers know this to be true, and many will prove it in their classrooms after receiving funds from Senator Arthur Orr’s Mini-Grant program this fall.

Through the program, individual teachers may apply for grants ranging from $50­–$75 to purchase tools and supplies, and you’d be surprised at the impact a small classroom grant can have!

Janell Hill at Leon Sheffield Elementary was excited to hear she was receiving funds. She shares, “Additional classroom funds are hard to come by, so you can imagine how delighted I was to hear that I had received the mini-grant from Senator Orr.”

She already has big plans for how she will use her money to provide more classroom seating options for her students! “Using stability balls in place of traditional seating does wonders for the focus and engagement of many students. In addition, research has shown that using a balance ball improves posture. The impact of this mini-grant goes beyond fun seating for my classroom. It has helped me address the needs of my students with ADHD and psychomotor over-excitabilities. I, along with so many others who received this grant from Senator Orr, am incredibly appreciative!”

At Austin High School, Alana Haughaboo and Michelle Partain chose to team up and make each dollar go even further. Together they will purchase a classroom set of the graphic novel Maus by Art Spiegelman, which explores the memories the author’s father has shared of his life in Germany as a Jew before and during World War II. In the book, Jews are depicted as mice, Nazis and other Germans as cats, and American soldiers as dogs.

Mrs. Haughboo explains, “Students enjoy reading this title because it is a change of pace from the typical novels we read in English class. Because of the cost to print a book full of pictures, the title is very expensive.  Mrs. Partain and I share a set of these books for students to read, and once we collect enough for a healthy class set of Maus, we hope to start collecting copies of the sequel: Maus II.”

Classrooms are being changed like this all over our school system thanks to the grants Senator Orr has provided through this program, and he’s happy to help make that happen. He sums it all up, saying, “Small dollars in the hands of our teachers and librarians can go a long way. They’ve proved time and time again to be the best stewards of resources that directly benefit their students. I’m humbled to play a very small role in helping these motivated educators deliver the best education for DCS students that they can provide.”

In total, Orr provided $24,000 in classroom grants throughout Decatur City Schools, and our teachers are sure to make every penny count for their students.

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