Rotarian Ed Jasnow presents teacher Mary Hines (PHS) with grant check while her class looks on. Hines is a 4-time grant recipient.
February is the month that Altadena Rotary gives money to local teachers to enhance their teaching experience and the learning experience of their students.
This year Altadena Rotary gave $10,500 in grants to local teachers. This divides into thirty-five $300 grants: Twenty-five are unrestricted grants, and ten are Americanism grants. The teachers fill out a one-page form that describes the envisioned project for which the grant will be used.
Altadena Rotary received 40 grant requests from eight schools in the Pasadena Unified School District – 25 for unrestricted grants and 15 for Americanism grants. Their budget was for 25 unrestricted grants and 10 Americanism grants. Ed Jasnow, Altadena Rotary's Community Service Chair, assembled a committee of four Rotarians to help him evaluate the 15 Americanism grant applications and choose the 10 that would be funded.
The teachers will be Altadena Rotary guests at a meeting at the end of the school year, where each instructor will share how his/her grant was used.
Unrestricted grants have been used to purchase such things as sets of audio and printed books along with CD players so children could listen to and read books at the same time, boosting their ability to recognize words. Elementary math teachers have purchased sticks and orbs that come apart to help their students visualize fractions.
