Seventh-grade students from Coronado K-8 who attended the Catalina Island Marine Institute trip were able to snorkel and visit the plankton, shark, and invertebrate labs.
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) has long provided grants to help finance education enrichment opportunities and summer sports activities for local students. Among the programs that recently received SBCO grants include:
San Manuel Softball. A $2,500 grant was given to fund a summer softball program for kids living in the greater San Manuel area.
Mammoth-San Manuel K-12 Summer School. A $6,500 grant provided funding for a summer school program that helps students improve their academic skills and reach grade-level performance.
Oracle Scholastic Books. Thanks to a $3,240 grant, every student from kindergarten through sixth grade at Mountain Vista School received a new book to take home every month during the school year.
Ray Learning Garden. A $5,000 grant for a Learning Garden in the Ray Unified School District was used to purchase garden supplies, tools, a chipper shredder, an irrigation system, and other tools to help more than 60 junior high students learn gardening skills they can use for the rest of their lives.
Miami Monsoon Youth Outreach. A $6,000 grant funded a program that brings to the school people working in the arts—theater, music, visual arts, and literary arts—to interact with kindergarten through third grade students at the Charles A. Berajano Elementary School.
Oracle School District GATE Program. The Oracle School District’s GATE program provides special educational opportunities for children who are academically gifted and/or talented in one or more areas. SBCO provided a $6,000 grant to fund this program at the Mountain Vista School.
Miami Discovery Time. SBCO provided $7,500 to support a program that uses hands-on activities with an emphasis on math. Students are given some leeway about which module they work on.
Miami Math Masters. A total of $11,500 was given to two programs, one for kindergarten through second grade and another for third through fifth grade, for math enrichment. Students are rewarded with T-shirts and M&M candies for mastering math skills.
Youth on Their Own. Youth on Their Own (YOTO) supports the high school graduation and continued success of homeless young people. Students receive assistance with living expenses as well as emotional support and incentives to stay in school. SBCO provided YOTO with a $5,000 grant.
Bookshelves Program at Ray Elementary School. With help from SaddleBrooke Ranch woodworkers, the Bookshelves Program gives each first-grade student in the Ray School District in Kearny a bookshelf and books to take home at the end of the school year. Books are added to the students’ “library” while they are in second and third grade. SBCO granted $6,000 for this program, which has been ongoing for 16 years!
Miami School District FUNctional Reading. The FUNctional Reading Program, which was funded with SBCO grants awarded to programs canceled by COVID, provides material in nonfiction reading to help students prepare for state reading tests.
Amphitheater School District Field Trips. Catalina Island—this enrichment experience at Coronado K-8 School allows 7th graders to participate in a three-day trip to solidify grade-level science content in oceanography, weather, and marine biology. SBCO provided $3,000 to fund student scholarships for this trip.
Grand Canyon—this enrichment activity allows Coronado K-8 School 6th graders to participate in a two-day trip to the Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon Dam, and Sunset Crater National Park. To solidify the geology science standards, the students can see first-hand how our world is carved and shaped by natural phenomena. SBCO granted $4,000 for student scholarships.
Miami Mindfulness Room. A $500 SBCO grant supported the implementation of a mindfulness room for use by staff and students in the Miami School District. The grant was used to pay for paint, bean bag chairs, educational posters, and other items to create this dedicated room.
Ray School District Gifted and Talented Program. The Ray School District Gifted and Talented Program received $5,000 in support from SBCO. This program provides special educational opportunities for children who are academically gifted and/or talented in one or more areas.
YMCA. SBCO awarded a $7,500 grant to provide scholarships for students who cannot afford the fees to attend the Triangle YMCA Summer Camp in Oracle.