Mini Grants
Mini-Grant Applications are Due
July 14, 2027
Wilkes Education Foundation Awards 35 Mini-Grants to WCS Teachers
Wilkesboro, N.C. – The Wilkes Education Foundation (WEF) has awarded 35 mini-grants for the 2026-27 academic year to Wilkes County school teachers. The grants of up to $2,000 each are designed to provide funds to implement creative and innovative instructional programs in the classrooms for which federal, state or local funds are not available. Teachers submit proposals that are reviewed anonymously and ranked based upon clarity of goals, creativity, benefit to and involvement of students, efficient use of foundation funds and adaptability of projects for use by other teachers.
The 35 mini-grants awarded for 2026-27 totaling $48,719.53 include the following:
Boomer Ferguson Elementary: Megan Church, Flexible Minds, Flexible Spaces: Creating a STEM Learning Environment for Student Success
C.B. Eller Elementary: Katy Willis, Grow a Writer with Me!
C. B. Eller/Ronda-Clingman/Roaring River Elementary: Kelsey Welborn, Accessible Arts for Little Artists
Central Wilkes Middle School: Dianne Price, May the Force Be with You, No Matter the Weather
East Wilkes High School: Carrie Vestal, Classroom Transformation and Kristen Dowell, Expanding Student Engagement Through Flexible Learning Spaces
East Wilkes Middle School: Kathy Wagoner, All Around the Room and Rita Ray, Bringing Literature to Life
Millers Creek Elementary: Laura Jones, Creating Community and Kristie Brown, Kindergarten Learning Stations: Building Stronger Foundations in Literacy, Math, and SEL
Moravian Falls Elementary: Stephanie Russell, Classroom on Wheels; Monica Smith, Reading on the Roll; Cindy Shatley, Book Bash Bingo: Score Your Next Favorite Read!; and Amy Janes, A Library for Everyone
Mt. Pleasant Elementary: Laura Billings, Learning Without Limits: Resources for Student Success
Mountain View Elementary: Haylie Sepulveda, Jaws and Mr. Rocket Launcher Walk into a Classroom
North Wilkes High: Michael Greene, The Inner Margin: Journaling, Goal-Setting, and Student Athlete Mental Health
North Wilkes Middle: Kinsey Crabb, 2026-2027 Drama Club Show and Levonda Griffin, Thinking Beyond the Desk: Empowering 7th Grade Mathematicians through Building Thinking Classrooms
North Wilkesboro/Wilkesboro Elementary: Lauren Oravsky, Threads of Culture: A Global Tie-Dye & Textile Arts Experience
West Wilkes High School: Susan Coleman, Yes Chef, I Will Dress and Impress! and Chris Roten, “Safety First!”
West Wilkes Middle: Joanne Schwab, Science Meets Drama Club; Ralph Sutton, Envirothon Chapter Startup/CO2 Drag Racing Initiative; Rhiannon Adams, Bridges to Success: Helping Every New Student Belong; and Ashley Boykin, A Literacy Learning Lab: CommonLit to Life
Wilkes Central High School: Jamie Miles, Zooming into Biology; Brandy Sappington and Ashley Clonch, “Love Where You Live: Exploring the Beauty of Us”; and Kelley Trivette, Windows, Mirrors, and Voices: Building Literacy Through Choice Reading for Multilingual Learners
Wilkes Early College High School: Paige Price, STEMletes (A Competitive STEM Experience); Anthony Byers, Bringing American Mythical Lore to Life and Jody Holleman, World Lit Meets Historical Fiction
Wilkesboro Elementary: Melody Johnston, Rocks, Rocks! Hands-On Earth Science Investigations and Stephanie Wehrmann, PurposeFul Reading: Books to Support Character Strong
Founded and incorporated in 1984, WEF has been awarding mini-grants since 1985. To date, some 1006 grants have been awarded to Wilkes County School teachers totaling $769,117.53. Funding for grants and scholarships is obtained from individual and corporate contributions and the annual Hugh Martin Memorial Golf Tournament.
Teachers say that getting these grants for students keeps them excited about teaching. Because of these grants, Wilkes County students have a chance to have wonderful resources that they otherwise would not have. These teaching tools keep students engaged in learning new concepts and make learning meaningful and fun. Their eyes light up each time they come into the classroom with a smile and eagerness to learn!
The president of WEF is Dr. Bert Young; vice-president Lee Bentley: secretary, Loretta Shumate; treasurer, Jody Hamby; mini-grant chair, Danny Holman; investment/finance chair, Bill Myers; fundraising Hugh Martin Memorial Golf Tournament chair, David McNeill; WEF, G. Gerald Hendley Family, and Della Arnold college scholarships chair, Marcia Reynolds; nominating chair, Bill Myers; and public awareness chair, Marsh Lyall.
The Wilkes Education Foundation is a private, non-profit, IRS 501(c) (3) tax-exempt endowment corporation dedicated to promoting excellence in education in the Wilkes County Schools. For information about making a donation to the WEF, contact Jody Hamby, 302 9th St., North Wilkesboro, NC 28659, call 336-667-1121 or go to the website at www.wilkeseducationfoundation.org.