2007 cohort of grantees
sidney baker
Principal, Sarah Smith Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Interactive Whiteboards
Dr. Baker believed his project, which used interactive technology, would enhance the learning environment, augment teachers’ instructional methods and provide technology experiences while increasing student achievement.
Wheda Acolatse
4th Grade, Alonzo F. Herndon Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Kidpreneurship-Component to "Young Men of Honor"
Ms. Acolatse took her Young Men of Honor to a Kidpreneurship Conference in Florida to learn about entrepreneurship.
Danielle battle
Principal, Parkside Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Enhancing Learning Via the Use of Ipods in the Classroom
Ms. Battle’s project placed new and exciting instruction delivery in math, reading, history and science classrooms, supporting research which showed employing technology can also increase student self-esteem through the opportunity to learn in a variety of engaging and motivating ways.
Annie Cecil
1st Grade, Sarah Smith Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: DVD First-Grade Documentary for Each Student
Focused on educating the whole child, Ms. Cecil believed her project to create a DVD documentary for each student would improve test scores. By creating expectations for students to improve written work, express ideas, internalize objectives and showcase their strengths, students’ self-esteem dramatically improved.
James Davis
5th Grade, Venetian Hills Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Can a Radius Expand - Scholars Experience Georgia Role Models
Producing student writers who emerge as flourishing authors was a goal of Mr. Davis’s project, where students would read and write about historical figures. He took his students to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center, the Carter Center and Morehouse College to learn about three important Georgia role models.
Melanie graham
3rd Grade, William M. Finch Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: High-Order Thinking Skills and Activities Book Club and Reading Room
Ms. Graham believed her “Book Club/Reading Room” project would make a direct and substantial impact on student achievement. Using various teaching methods to meet individual student needs, she employed project-based assessments, and school-wide benchmarks to help students excel.
raine hackler
1st-5th Grade, Thomasville Heights Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Webfolios
Believing that a child’s self-esteem directly impacts student achievement, Mr. Hackler’s project supported Thomasville Heights’ fifth-graders’ journey to middle school and their next levels of learning. Students created “Webfolios,” which are portfolios of each student’s accomplishments based on the principles of creativity, collaboration, cooperation and celebration.
Caroline Jernigan
9th & 10th Grade, Carver Early College High School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Organizational Advocacy / Campaign Development
Ms. Jernigan’s project to organize an advocacy campaign provided the framework for students to strengthen their research, public speaking, writing, teamwork and leadership skills. Additionally, students had the opportunity to make a positive impact on their communities by recognizing and embracing their rights as U.S. citizens.
marla johnson
2nd Grade, East Lake Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Student-Led Playground Equipment
In alignment with the school district’s initiative to improve the health and wellness of its students, Ms. Johnson believed her project to install playground equipment would increase physical activity. Research shows increased physical activity can improve academic achievement.
sara johnston
Special Education, Capitol View Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Supplemental Computer Software for School Computer Lab
Ms. Johnston and her colleagues believed the integration of high quality educational software applications into the school inventory such as “Jump Start,” “learning Shortcuts,” and others would benefit all Capitol View students.
Anastasia michals
6th Grade, B.S. Carson Honors Preparatory Middle School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Interactive Whiteboard for Mathematics Classroom
Ms. Michals believed her project to embrace and utilize whiteboards in her math classes would be beneficial to her students by allowing them to take ownership of the concepts studied. After project implementation, Ms. Michals is quoted saying: “Students feel like citizens instead of visitors, which creates a positive classroom environment and culture for achievement.”
raymond veon
K-5 Art Teacher, M.A. Jones Elementary School
Atlanta Public Schools
Project: Initiate a System-wide Arts Education Fair
Mr. Veon’s project to initiate an Arts Education Fair for Atlanta Public Schools started at Jones Elementary School. “Building self-esteem is a full time job” and he believed his project would help students lay claim to their own self-image and individual value, enabling them to meet challenges and enact change.