Alton Educational Foundation Awards Eight Grants to Teachers

ALTON – The Alton Educational Foundation recently awarded eight grants to Alton School District teachers and staff as a part of their Fall 2025 Grant Application Cycle. The programs and projects proposed and awarded will serve over 3,100 students across six schools.

Each year, the Foundation raises funding through their Guardians of Education Program which is specifically targeted to provide staff grants designed to expand innovative programs and projects for Alton students. To date, over $200,000 in grants have been awarded to schools and classrooms through the program.

During this year’s fall application cycle for grant applications, eight recipients were selected for funding with a total of $11,606 being awarded. The recipients and their respective projects were:

Alton Middle School – Bridget Lyles

• Program: Redbird Connect

Alton High School – Tatiana Adams, April Gray, Chelsea Anderson, Joe Michalski and Denise Belobraydic

• Program: LINK Crew

East, West and North Elementary – Amy Miller

• Program: SPIKE Your Coding Skills

Gilson Brown Elementary – Amy Green, Anjie Baumgartner, Carey Cappel, Jenna Mindrup and Amanda Garcia

• Program: Literacy Toy Box

North Elementary – Ashley Thompson

• Program: Social Emotional Learning Enhanced Resources

North Elementary – Kim Lawrence

• Program: Making Small Group Reading FUN!

Alton High School – Josh Gaither

• Program: Growing Beyond Earth

East Elementary – David Schwartz

• Program: Generation Genius Science

According to the Foundation’s Board Chair, Catherine Droste, the applications received for this cycle were highly innovative and deserving of funds. “As a board, we were pleased with the number of applicants and the quality of the projects proposed. It’s a testament to Alton teachers and staff in how they take great measures to provide their students with new and exciting ways to learn.”

The Foundation will offer a second grant application cycle for this school year in the spring. Droste praised the organization’s donors and sponsors who make the opportunities possible. “We have an incredible level of support from our individual donors, company sponsors and other special projects that allow us to continue providing these opportunities for our students, staff and schools. Our donors make it all happen and for that, we are truly thankful.”

For more information on the Alton Educational Foundation, visit altoned.org.

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