SRR awards $15K in grants to teachers
11/5/2009 12:33 AM   1 comment(s) on this story E-mail this story to a friend

Savannah River Remediation (SRR), the liquid waste contractor at the Savannah River Site, has awarded educational grants of $1,000 each to teachers at 15 area schools to recognize and support excellence in teaching.

The grants are awarded directly to area elementary schools to provide funding for innovative approaches to teaching science and mathematics.

"We have schools doing outstanding and exciting things in their classrooms, but many times they are limited in their ability to reach students by a lack of materials and supplies," said Jim French, SRR president and project manager. "These grants help teachers provide creative and innovative experiences for their students."

He continued, "As a technology-based company, SRR has a history of supporting education. For the past couple of decades, fewer students have been pursuing math- and science-related careers. If we are to remain competitive, both as a company and a country, we must reverse that trend. Helping teachers excite students about math and science is one way of doing that."

A team of SRR employees reviewed the grant proposals submitted this year and selected teachers from 15 different schools to receive a total of $15,000 in funding.

The Aiken County winners include Denise Broome, Redcliffe Elementary School; Jan Boulineau, Hammond Hill Elementary School; Christi McWaters and Linda Walker, East Aiken Elementary School; Denise Dickey, Clearwater Elementary School; Teresa Spieker, North Augusta Elementary School; Michael Truitt, Busbee Elementary School and Alicia Bennett, Lindsey Quarles and Sarah McKinnon, Mossy Creek Elementary School.

Walker, East Aiken's math coach, said she and first-grade teacher McWaters were looking for some project funding.

"SRR stepped in and was a perfect fit to get a grant on math manipulatives," Walker said. "There are some kits called 'Hands-On Standards' that would support what we're trying to do in teaching to the standards. They filled in some gaps that we may not have, so we're very excited."

Among other winning proposals is a project that would combine classroom work with experiential exercises in using simple, robot-programming software. Another project would teach first-grade students the use of mathematical concepts such as money, time and measurement and their use in everyday life. One grant will be used to enhance instruction for gifted students in grades 3 through 5 by using geometric and algebraic equations in real-life situations.

SRS is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy. The SRS Liquid Waste contract is managed by SRR, a team of companies led by URS Corp. with partners Bechtel National, CH2M Hill and Babcock & Wilcox. Subcontractors for the contract include AREVA, Energy Solutions and Washington Safety Management Solutions.SFlbContact Rob Novit at rnovit@aikenstandard.com.

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