Caldwell receives grant from Berkeley Electric Cooperative

MONCKS CORNER, SC  – Amanda Caldwell, English teacher at Westview Middle School, received a $1,000 Bright Ideas grant from Berkeley Electric Cooperative to create English Interactive Student Notebooks. The grant was awarded as a part of Berkeley Electric Cooperative’s 75 Acts of Education, celebrating the companies 75^th year of service to the community.

“The grant is helping to fund interactive student notebooks; this year-long project facilitates a student-driven learning process tailored to individual student needs. Interactive notebooks draw on creative and scientific principles not traditionally associated with English/Language arts. The notebooks are formatted in a manner that engages both right and left hemispheres of the brain, increasing student comprehension, retention and synthesis of learning material. The notebooks are organized, assembled and maintained by the students. Teacher provided materials are permanently mounted into the notebook on the right side and students complete their related assignments on the left side.  The notebooks serve as great study materials and complete 8th grade with a highly user-friendly resource to assist their ongoing success in 9th grade,” said Caldwell.

Bright Ideas is a grant program designed to provide funding for innovative classroom-based education projects. The grant is intended to fund projects outside normal public school funding sources. Educators who teach Kindergarten through 12^th grade, within Berkeley Electric Cooperative’s three county service territory may apply.

“We’re extremely proud of Ms. Caldwell and her students. The Bright Ideas grant program is one of our 75 Acts of Education, and it is a way for us to support our local educators and the students they serve. Ms. Caldwell is grooming our next generation of members and we’re excited to see the outcome of their projects,” said Berkeley Electric Cooperative’s Communications & Public Affairs Specialist, Johanna Cooper.

Berkeley Electric Cooperative’s 75 Acts of Education initiative is focused on giving back to the communities that have supported it through the last three-quarters of a century. “By establishing the Acts, it inspires the co-op to look to the future while honoring the past.” (www.berkeleyelectric.coop)

The “75 Acts of Education” are as follows:

• Safety and Wise Energy Use Programs in classroom settings
  • Programs for all age groups:  Head Start – 12^th grade
    • Utilizes the PowerTown safety demonstration (portable interactive display), videos and handouts
    • Provides the teacher with a full class time program speaker
• Safety and wise energy use programs for youth groups; 4H, FFA, Scouts, etc.
• Provide a School Bus Electrical Safety Program
  • When and how to evacuate a school bus involved in a downed line situation – PowerTown demo
• “Celebrate Electricity” Poster Contest for 5^th Graders
  • Provide a speaker to tell the story of electricity and co-ops, focusing on what their life was like as 5^th grader in the 1930s without power and what it took to get it and how it changed their lives.
  • Provide 1^st place prize for a student from each school. Includes a pizza party or t-shirt (to be determined) for classroom participation
  • Display posters at annual meeting inviting the students and family for presentation of awards.
• Career Academies Partnership
• Youth Tour Program
  • All expenses paid trip to Washington D.C. (8 students)
  • Promotes youth awareness of government and cooperatives
  • Includes opportunities for teachers to experience the trip as well – all expenses paid.
• Student of the Month Program
  • Honoring local students that do outstanding things in their schools and communities
• Bright Lights Grant Applications for Teachers
  • Allowing educators to compete for funding outside of often-limited resources
• Recurring donations and support to Schools
• BackPack Program Support
• Lunch Buddy Program
  • Volunteer employee participation
• Reader Program
  • Volunteer employee participation
• Summer Intern Program
• Career Fairs Participation – any grade
• Participation in School Fairs
• Provide safety and energy efficiency activity/coloring books for all elementary/middle school age groups
  • With classroom participation
  • At community events
• Promote electrical safety and wise energy use program/speaker to “Home School” groups
• Van De Graaff (vandergraphs) usage in classroom demonstrations and fun/fair days
• EnlightenSC teacher education program
• High School Environmental Service Projects…
  • Energy for Wildlife
  • Go Green Contest
• Discovery Education/Classroom Kits
• Kids “Super Energy Saver” Program: CFL Charlie and LED Lucy
• Teach for America
  • Reviewing the program for support opportunities
• 6^th grade 101 Energy Efficiency
• Schools A+ Energy Efficiency Program
• Touchstone Energy Kids Zone on bec.coop website
• Provide update on solar school projects
  • What have the kids learned…promoting their stories
• Berkeley County Book Mobile Sponsorship
• Old Cherry Hill School  Restoration – Preserving our educational history
  • In-kind electrical work for the Pavilion