Coweta Teachers Receive Bright Ideas Grants from EMC

Palmetto, GA – November 15, 2013 – Seventeen Coweta school teachers were surprised with gift bags, balloons and Bright Ideas checks ranging from $670 to $1,500 when a group of Operation Round Up representatives showed up Oct. 28-29 to announce the 2013 winners in classrooms across the county.

Every year, Coweta-Fayette EMC’s Operation Round Up initiative gives educators the opportunity to apply for grants dedicated to special teaching projects not often available in tightly budgeted school systems. Through this program, the Coweta-Fayette Trust, Inc., Board of Directors awarded over $30,000 in Bright Ideas grants to 26 deserving recipients throughout the EMC service area.

Earlier in 2013, the Trust asked K-12 teachers to submit proposals for innovative classroom projects, and over 100 grant applications were received. Without knowing the names of schools or the educators involved, a group of retired teachers from Coweta, Fayette and Heard Counties rated requests according to the level of creativity in the learning experience, as well as potential student involvement.

Winners in Coweta County were: Johnny Holloway, Evans Middle, $1,500 for “Chorus Spring Show Project”; Bob Ramseur, Newnan High, $1,500 for “Green Energy LED Stage Lighting”; Sally Grumbles, Northgate High, $1,494 for “Let’s Finally Talk”; Kristi Lanave, East Coweta High, $1,500 for “Inquiry-Based Labs”; Michelle McClendon, Evans Middle, $1,500 for “Energy and Engineering”; Erin Smith and Suzanne Marshall, Northgate High, $670 for “Plant and Landscape Therapy”; Orla Thomas, Northgate High, $1,405 for “STEM Program Technology Resources”; Janey Allen, Moreland Elementary, $1,304 for “Communication Inspiration”; Lisa Quick, East Coweta High, $1,295 for “Project ACHIEVE”; Misty Wilson, Lee Middle, $1,500 for “The Robertsons Go To Ancient China (Duck Dynasty Unit)”; Mitch Bailey, East Coweta Middle, $1,080 for “Physics of Flight”; Martha Milam, East Coweta High, $1,498 for “Next Generation of Scientists and Engineers”; Rebecca Springfield, Elm Street Elementary, $1,493 for “Improving Performance and Differentiating for Success”; Carol Ann Toole, Newnan High, $1,500 for “Storyboard, Sequential Art and Creative Art Applications”; Sally Cavanaugh, Lee Middle, $1,498 for “iCSI”; and Tom Barnett, Central Educational Center, $1,500 for “Let Freedom Ring.”

The Bright Ideas program is sponsored by the Coweta-Fayette EMC Operation Round Up Trust from funds raised by EMC members who allow their bills to be “rounded up” to the nearest dollar each month. This is the ninth year the Bright Ideas grant has been available, and it will be offered to educators once again for the 2013-2014 school year. Interested teachers are encouraged to begin working now on plans for their applications.

Coweta-Fayette EMC is a consumer-owned cooperative providing electricity and related services to over 74,000 member accounts in Coweta, Fayette, Heard, South Fulton, Clayton, Spalding, Troup and Meriwether Counties.

Janey Allen, Moreland Elementary

Sally Grumbles, Northgate High

Amy Lott