QPS Foundation approves 22 grant applications for nearly $150,000 to Quincy Public Schools

August 28, 2024 | By Muddy River News

The QPS Foundation recently awarded a grant for equipment for an astronomy course. From left, School Board president and QPSF trustee Shelley Arns, QPSF trustee Brandy Blickhan Ridder, QHS astronomy teacher Jared Holman, QPSF executive director Heidi Lanier and QPSF office manager Katie Rodemich. | Photo courtesy of QPS Foundation

QUINCY — The Quincy Public Schools Foundation approved 22 grant applications totaling $89,219.98 in its fall grant cycle. An additional $58,411.39 in guaranteed grant funding was released from the Foundation’s endowment for spending in the 2024-2025 school year. The funds for this grant cycle were made available after July 1 and will be for use in the 2024-2025 school year.

“Seeing the funds we raise get distributed into the schools is a tremendous feeling,” Heidi Lanier, executive director, said in a press release. “The grant projects that our teachers and administrators came up with are certainly going to make a positive impact on QPS student experience, and that is a ‘win’ for our entire community.”

Grants were awarded to every school within the Quincy Public School District. Some of the larger grants were for wrestling mats for the high school and junior high school programs, Vex robotic kits for the junior high school and play-based curriculum materials for kindergarten and transitional kindergarten students districtwide.

Other grants funded by the Foundation were:

Equipment for the Flex program at Quincy High School
Equipment for the RAD Closet at Iles Elementary School
A 9 Square in the Air set for Iles Elementary School
Raised garden beds for Denman Elementary School
Funding for Rooney BizTown event at Rooney Elementary School
Materials to enhance the counseling office conference room at Quincy High School
Flexible seating for the lry at Denman Elementary School
Equipment for an astronomy course at Quincy High School
Locker room digital clock for the girls basketball program at Quincy High School
Accessible 2:1 instrumentation at Iles Elementary School
Funding for social skills and community exploration for the autism program at Baldwin Elementary School
Stand-up mobile desks for each district principal
Swimming program for all K-5 special needs classes
Books for a third-grade author study at Denman Elementary School
Ozobot Evo classroom kit for Rooney Elementary School
Books for a family pizza nght at Iles Elementary
Outdoor furniture for new transportation facility
Cooking program for special education classrooms at Deman Elementary
Intramural basketball program for all elementary schools

“The funding we provide really depends on the grant applications we receive,” Lanier said. “We work very closely with QPS District administration to make sure that the projects we are funding wouldn’t have funding from other sources while aligning with the direction the district is moving.”

The QPS Foundation helped match 10 applications with existing funding in the QPS District. The combination of foundation and district-funded grants resulted in more than 50 percent of the applications being funded.

“The funding that QPSF is supplying is so important to our schools. It is unfortunate we were not able to fund 100 percent of the requests we received,” Lanier said. “As we enter our upcoming fundraising campaign, I hope the community recognizes that the impact we are making can be so much more. It really is up to us in the community to make sure that we create the environment we know our students need.”

In addition to the competitive grants program, QPSF also has 21 guaranteed endowed funds, or Circles of Investment, that provide funding for specific areas of need or programs. The beneficiaries of these funds receive a letter outlining how much is available to their program, they spend the funds through their schools and then QPSF reimburses the schools.

“Our Circles of Investment program is the gift that keeps giving,” Lanier said. “Once a circle is established, we provide annual funding to projects that donors select when they begin their Circle. It creates security for both the Foundation and our programs.”

All QPS staff members can apply for funding through the QPS Foundation’s QPS staff grants, which award up to $1,500. Certified staff members are eligible to apply for Dream Big grants, which are available for up to $25,000. The application period for spring grants opened on July 1. To apply, visit qpsfoundation.org.