February 13, 2025 was “Dream Your Sweet Day.” It’s a day on which you think about the people you love and actively imagine giving optimism and happiness to others. What a perfect day for Tomball Education Foundation (TEF) to award its annual grants!
TEF offers teachers, administrators and support staff the opportunity to apply for grants to support innovative programs or projects that promote higher levels of student learning. The grants must enhance student academic performance and support the stated objectives, goals, and initiatives of the District/Campus Improvement Plan.
TEF has presented over $460,000 in grants to innovative Tomball Independent School District personnel.
The 2025 awards of 46 grants for more than $150,000 were distributed among 16 Tomball ISD campuses and three district departments:
- $5,000 – Tomball Memorial High School (Brady Bonnin, Rebekah Svennson)
TMHS Ecosystem Pond will create an outdoor learning space where students design and build a sustainable pond, applying environmental systems concepts to real-world challenges. - $4,998 – Tomball Memorial High School (Dr. Nora Pacha)
Anatomy Unlocked: Immersive Learning Z Space AR revolutionizes the Dual-Credit Anatomy and Physiology curriculum by integrating state-of-the-art augmented reality technology with immersive 3D visualizations and interactive simulations. - $4,998 – Wildwood Elementary School (Alison Love)
Audio Adventures can significantly enhance learning experiences by making literature more accessible and engaging. - $4,988 – Wildwood Elementary School (Trisha Hacker)
Reading Revolution: Applying Science for Success can enhance reading skills for students in grades PK-2 by providing access to a curated collection of decodable texts aligned with phonics instruction. - $4,950 – Lakewood Elementary School (Amber Smith)
Just Right Readers Deluxe Decodable Libraries for UFLI Instruction allow struggling students to apply foundational reading skills in-context. - $4,885 – Early Excellence Academy (Madison Mills, Rosa Iannuzzi)
Building Strong Foundations: Enhancing Early Childhood Learning Through Sensory Motor Integration can improve sensory processing, motor coordination, and self-regulation in Early Childhood Special Education classrooms. - $4,865 – Early Excellence Academy (Shay Newton, Lisa Weil)
TEF ECSE SDC Sensory Materials provide critical sensory materials to support 3- to 4-year-old students with severe autism and/or cognitive disabilities. - $4,786 – Special Services (Nancy Newton, Kathryn Bonds)
Accessible Learning for All: An Adapted Books & Materials Lab is a dedicated space equipped with tools and resources to create individualized and accessible instructional materials for students with disabilities. - $4,775 – Staff Development Center (James Herwig)
Navigating New Heights: Enhancing Learning with Programmable Drones provides students with hands-on coding experience in three dimensions. - $4,750 – Tomball Memorial High School (Jessica Kana, Dr, Nora Pacha)
Bridging Science Gaps with Virtual Lab: Enhancing STEM Education integrates virtual labs into the classroom, providing students with immersive, hands-on experiences in a risk-free environment. - $4,440 – Canyon Pointe Elementary School (Katy Gates)
Building Bright Minds: Enhancing Math and Science Education project utilizes I Know It, an interactive, online math practice platform for elementary students. - $4,276 – Creekside Park Junior High School (Brittney Huggins)
Enhancing Student Independence and Skill Development Through Task Boxes is a project providing individualized task boxes for students in a self-contained special education classroom. - $4,114 – Lakewood Elementary School (Kim Easton)
A Smart Board will help is in Bringing Art to Life through vibrant visuals and interactive lessons, making lessons more engaging and informative. - $4,080 – Lakewood Elementary School (Elizabeth Choate)
Strengthening Literacy with Targeted Small-Group Interventions Beyond UFLI provides small-group reading interventions and customized, data-driven support for students. - $4,080 – Lakewood Elementary School (Jennifer Gigout)
Strengthening Literacy with Targeted Small-Group Interventions Beyond UFLI provides small-group reading interventions for students struggling with Tier 1 UFLI instruction. - $4,080 – Lakewood Elementary School (Christina Luchak)
Strengthening Literacy with Targeted Small-Group Interventions Beyond UFLI helps struggling readers with personalized instruction and ongoing progress monitoring. - $4,080 – Lakewood Elementary School (Ysenia Stadler)
Strengthening Literacy with Targeted Small-Group Interventions Beyond UFLI provides small-group reading interventions and customized, data-driven support for students. - $4,080 – Lakewood Elementary School (Madelyn Zbranek)
Strengthening Literacy with Targeted Small-Group Interventions Beyond UFLI will improve phonics, decoding, and fluency skills. - $4,000 – Tomball Memorial High School (Christina Thornton)
Enhancing Social Skills Through Virtual Reality provides personalized coaching through lessons that simulate real-world scenarios, ensuring one-on-one instruction tailored to each student’s needs. - $3,791 – Grand Lakes Junior High School (Melissa O’Brien, Jill Moreno, Rachel Page, Lisa Stoyak, Eloise Traw)
Kami for Kids Digital Learning Tool allows students to use traditional paper-based skills (writing, highlighting, drawing, coloring, etc.) and digital tools (dictionaries, text-to-speech, video comments, etc.) for cross-curricular learning. - $3,562 – Lakewood Elementary School (Betsy Castille)
Just Right Readers Deluxe Decodable Libraries for UFLI Instruction enhances literacy instruction through the use of Just Right Readers Deluxe Libraries. - $3,366 – Lakewood Elementary School (Chastity Jasso)
Just Right Readers Deluxe Decodable Libraries for UFLI Instruction can enhance literacy instruction using decodable readers. - $3,300 – Rosehill Elementary School (Adry Salazar)
A Sanctuary for Sensory Growth: Funding a Dedicated Space for Special Needs Students is a multi-sensory space that will provide calming tools and engaging activities that promote focus and social interaction by offering tailored sensory experiences. - $3,242 – Willow Creek Elementary School (Michelle Vazquez)
Full STEM Ahead: Block Play in the 21st Century replicates BLOCKFest, in which students in PreK-Collab classes rotate through 5 STEM block centers that have unique, specific learning goals. - $3,200 – Oakcrest Intermediate School (Laura Lagos, Emily Courcier, Amber Cook, Connie Malphrus, Danielle Wolf, Christie McTee)
Engaging Hearts and Minds in the Math Classroom will allow the 5th-grade math team to purchase tools needed to educate, design, launch, implement, share, collaborate, facilitate, and evaluate math solutions. - $2,976 – Tomball Memorial High School (Morgan Boyle)
Enhancing Writing Competency and Engagement through Interactive Classroom Media impacts coach writing and increases reading comprehension. - $2,976 – Tomball Memorial High School (Janelle Collins)
Enhancing Writing Competency and Engagement through Interactive Classroom Media use iPads in conjunction with SMARTboards as an in-lesson tool, providing critical writing intervention and increasing student engagement. - $2,976 – Tomball Memorial High School (Marcella Leung)
Enhancing Writing Competency and Engagement through Interactive Classroom Media allows teachers to model annotation strategies that increase reading comprehension. - $2,946 – Tomball Intermediate School (Becky Hughes, Stephanie Tempest, Heather Stachowiak, Jennifer Daniel, Amy Kraeger)
Developmental Kitchen Improvement will fund the creation of a fully equipped kitchen within a special education classroom, integrating life skills, academic knowledge, and social development. - $2,890 – Tomball High School, Tomball Memorial High School, Tomball Star Academy (Shannon Gutierrez, Steve Shiels, Alfred Jones, Mary Margaret Bolato)
Hope Squad provides a peer-to-peer support system that empowers students to notice and respond to signs of mental distress among their peers. - $2,805 – Willow Creek Elementary School (Lauren Briley, Jessica Wright)
Supplemental Reading Program for Developmental Students uses Benchmark Phonics Intervention to provide phonics and reading passages instruction with comprehension questions. - $2,768 – Tomball Memorial High School (Betteanne Purcell)
Roots of Knowledge supports Horticulture and Advanced Plant and Soil Science courses by providing an outdoor laboratory that will allow students to learn essential skills practicing plant science. - $2,541 – Lakewood Elementary School (Kristi Donald)
Math You Can Move! provides multi-sensory learning by making abstract concepts accessible using dry-erase magnetic ten-frame boards, magnetic counters, magnetic base ten blocks, and Rekenreks. - $2,500 – Creekside Forest Elementary School (Penny Oelschlegal, Molly Schwarze, Susan Merida, Jennifer Guerra)
Learning At Your Fingertips can enhance elementary specialized instruction by integrating touchscreen monitors into small-group learning. - $2,407 – Grand Lakes Junior High School (Kristi Pearson)
Escape the Ordinary Math Lesson engages students in collaboration and solving math problems using the interactive Escape Room platform. - $2,300 – Tomball Memorial High School, Creekside Park Jr. High School (Kelsey Turner)
Innovative Grant Application for an Augmented Reality Sandbox can increase student learning with interactive, hands-on experiences across multiple subjects. - $2,100 – Wildwood Elementary School (Melissa Richards, Layal Romero, Sarah Richards, Mason Carroll, Michele Taylor, Kellie Greenberg, Jennifer Velasquez)
Building the Future with STEM Bins enhances engagement and learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). - $1,834 – Decker Prairie Elementary School (Meghan Cooney)
STEM Station for Students is an innovative way to engage kindergarteners in hands-on learning that improves critical thinking and collaboration skills while fostering a lifelong love for learning. - $1,800 – Tomball Memorial High School (Amy Oliver)
Cooking for Success: Enhancing Daily Living and Science Education for Students with Disabilities can create a more inclusive and equitable learning environment for students with disabilities. - $1,795 – Timber Creek Elementary School (Kelly Moore)
Out of This World Learning Experience is an immersive 360-degree portable planetarium that sends students on a space journey without leaving campus. - $1,682 – Lakewood Elementary School (Heather Oliver, Tiffany Davila, Lori Weed, Kristen Cross, Emily Schaffer)
Empowering Young Minds: Storyworks Literacy will help teachers by enhancing students’ reading comprehension, critical thinking, and writing skills. - $1,640 – Wildwood Elementary School (Lisa Bua, Amanda Dunne)
BRAINball Equipment for use in physical education unites grade-level instructional teams with the instructional leadership team, special population teams, and intervention teams to support reading, grammar, and math skills. - $1,574 – Rosehill Elementary School (Claudia Lozano, Adry Salazar, Heidi Hansen)
Eco-Innovators: A Collaborative Recycling Club is a unique opportunity to create an inclusive, impactful, and engaging program that promotes recycling and fosters a sense of belonging and collaboration among students of varying abilities. - $1,527 – Tomball High School (Lynn Brewer)
Activate Student Empowerment and Engagement Project utilizes the Lightspeed Activate audio pod system to differentiate student instruction and foster individual growth without interrupting full-group instruction. - $1,040 – Oakcrest Intermediate School (Holly Ellis, Rachel Grimes)
Sewing Machines for Innovative Creations promotes the exploration of fiber arts while advancing students’ understanding of mathematics, collaborative work, and art elements such as form and texture. - $597 – West Elementary School (Leslie Emory)
Seating For Success: Transforming Learning Environments With Flexible Seating allows students in traditionally furnished/designed special education classrooms to enhance engagement and increase positive learning outcomes.
TISD educational professionals work hard to maintain Tomball’s premiere, destination district status. Congratulations to these proactive, exceptional staff members, who turn their dreams and visions into positive learning experiences for today’s students and tomorrow’s leaders.
