Ossining MATTERS to Fund New Lights for OHS Auditorium
Plus Twelve Other Grants for 2009 - 2010

Ossining MATTERS Education Foundation launched its sixth year of funding programs and projects to enrich the education of all children in the Ossining School District with a donation of $72,724, supporting thirteen different grants in five of Ossining’s six school buildings.

These grants represent a mix of innovative proposals from Ossining’s creative, dedicated teachers and administrators and continued funding for proven successes. Each grant helps to further Ossining MATTERS’ mission to support and enrich the learning opportunities for all children in the Ossining School District.

Ossining MATTERS is particularly excited to announce that thanks to the success of the Spring Gala Concert and Auction, the foundation is providing full funding for Shine a Light on the Arts, the purchase of a dimmer board and a lighting console to significantly upgrade the lighting in the OHS auditorium, used by performing arts groups from all schools in the district.

In addition, Ossining MATTERS will fund the following grants for the 2009 - 2010 school year:

At Park School
-Continued support of Project Tremors (formerly Formula for Success).

At Brookside
-Continued support of Chess at Recess.

-Continued support of the SPLASH (Science Partners Learning about Animals of the Sound and the Hudson) collaborative science program.
-Curriculum Based Language Workshops for Spanish Speaking Parents, a program for Spanish speaking parents to assist them in understanding their children’s curriculum and to enhance their ability to help with homework

A.t Claremont
-Music in History, History in Music, a program in which 175 Claremont students will each build a m’bira (a thumb piano) under the direction of an Artist in Residence, who will teach the students about the music and the instrument, and its place in African and American music. The project will culminate in an assembly where the instruments will be played alongside professional performers.
-Chess at Claremont, which will bring the program that has seen such success at Park and Brookside into the Claremont building

At Roosevelt
-New equipment for the highly successful School of Rock program
-Support for the Ossining DARE program.
-Roosevelt Art Enrichment, a program in which the entire fifth-grade will work together to create new, age-appropriate art (mosaic and mural) for their new school building.

At OHS
-The Art of Murals, a program in which 25 OHS students will work together with two teachers to create murals at the high school.
-Yearbook Summer Workshop, a stipend to assist two students with the expenses of attending a summer program, which will provide the training necessary to produce the new OHS yearbook digitally.
-A generous donation to the Guidance Discretionary Fund, which allows the OHS Guidance Office to help students in need pay for testing fees, prep classes, college-level classes, and college application fees.

This donation brings the dollar amount for programs funded by Ossining MATTERS to nearly $325,000 in total support provided to our school district. Founded in 2003, the organization has now funded over one hundred grants.

Ossining MATTERS is grateful not only to the teachers and administrators who propose and implement these fine projects, but also to the generous support of the Ossining community, whose donations of both funds and volunteer time make it possible for Ossining MATTERS to continue to carry out its mission.