Overview
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Grants are awarded for the purpose of supporting innovative and creative initiatives that will enhance the curriculum for students in grades K-12 of the Scarborough public schools.
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Programs and initiatives must be aligned with the approved Scarborough School District K-12 curriculum.
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Grants are intended to support programs and initiatives that likely will impact a significant number of students or promise to have a profound impact on a smaller number of students.
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Grant awards are intended to be used as seed money to fund new programs and projects rather than previously funded projects and are not intended to fund items that fall within traditional school budget considerations.
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In order to submit a grant request an applicant must be an employee of the Scarborough School District.
To learn about the projects that SEF has supported, visit our Recent Grant Awards page or for specific details about the application and review process visit our Grant Guidelines page.
For more information, please email us at info@SEFMaine.org – to express your interest in volunteer opportunities, please use our Volunteer Form.
Grant Success Story
The Local Stories project was a highlight of the Fall 2014 for many third and fourth graders at Wentworth School. We are excited to share the success of this project which was funded by a grant from the Scarborough Education Foundation.
At the start of the school year, students researched the history of the Scarborough Marsh, and created a permanent mural and a performance based on that research. Visiting artists Laurie Downey and Gretchen Berg collaborated with Scarborough Historical Society member Bruce Thurlow and Joyce Alden, community volunteers, and teachers to bring this project to Scarborough. Students were guided in their research for this multi-disciplinary, integrated arts project by classroom teachers Maire Trombley, David Sloatman and art teacher Joanne Maloney.
Over two months, students have been interviewing local elders who have lived, worked and played in the Marsh, and are sharing their firsthand experiences and memories. They have looked at old photos and heard stories from Bruce Thurlow, Becky Delaware and Linda Woodard about clamdigging and canning factories, ships navigating narrow channels, and the bad old days when refrigerators and old tires were dumped in the Marsh. George Neptune, from the Abbe Museum, told creation stories from the Wabanaki tribes, and demonstrated traditional basket weaving with sweet grass and brown ash bark. There were field trips to the Marsh itself and the Audubon Society Center, to the Scarborough Historical Society, to the Scarborough Public Library for research, and a chilly visit in early November to clam flats to experience clam digging firsthand. Students are keeping project journals of writing and drawings based on the stories they hear and see. During a week-long residency with the visiting artist team, students painted the mural and develop a performance piece based on these drawings and themes from their research.
January 7, 2105 the students unveiled the mural that has been months in the making. The video shares the performance based on their research, directed by theater artist Gretchen Berg. The mural will remain as a permanent installation in the cafeteria of the school.
Enjoy the video of the performance ! http://vimeo.com/116477427
Marsh Stories is one of an ongoing series of Local Stories projects in Maine elementary schools. For more information on the Project, see www.lauriedowney.net/schoolmurals. This project is supported by a generous grant from the Scarborough Educational Foundation.
