Thanks to our generous donors, MEF is able to continue funding our established collaborative programs with McMinnville District schools; Science Experiences and Artist-in-Residence, as well as our Teacher Mini Grants and Battle of the Books.

Since 2000, MEF has awarded over $589k for mini grants. In 2022-23 MEF awarded 23 mini grants totaling $19,604 to teachers in all the District schools. As a result:

• elementary school students will be thinking & learning as they exercise with Brainball
• middle school students will be in a writing workshop, “Dear Younger Me,” and expressing themselves through writing poetry about nature
• High school students will be thinking about and creating opportunities for their futures.

Brainball: physical activity + academic learning = fun & learning.

Everyone will be reading and many will be involved with robotics. Grants are a result of the innovative and creative applications from our teachers.

The 2023-24 grants will be awarded in November 2023.

Students read books from a standardized list for each grade level and then compete to answer trivia-like questions about the books. HS Librarian Ms. McGreal is excited about her OBOB students:

“This year, the student book club at MHS is reading only books from the OBOB list so that students can form teams to compete at the local, regional and, fingers crossed, national levels! Our small but mighty group is very eager and has chosen the book House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland to start off with. Our book club is excited about the wide range of genres on the OBOB list (especially Fantasy) and we are even going to go back to the 1700s with Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey for our December book!”

MEF purchases multiple books on each year’s list for school libraries. so that they are available for all students.

MEF is continuing to partner with McMinnville schools by providing art materials for their hands-on art programs that are part of their K-5 elementary school curriculum. Currently:

• 4th graders are creating and painting a clay sculpture
• 5th graders are studying the art of Frida Kahlo and creating their own self-portraits with artist Jessica Campbell

MEF partners with the District to offer hands-on science experiences, outside the classroom, to every District K-4 student. Kindergartners study habitats in class and outside. First-grade students study how sound travels at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.

HS Pathway students often assist at science experiences.

Second graders study habitats like pond water at Miller Woods.

Third graders study LEGO Robotics and test their robots in competitions at Evergreen.