Classroom Grants

Fall 2025

Teachers and students in the Harrisonville School District recently received $6,389.47 in grants from the Harrisonville Public School Foundation. Classroom grants formerly known as teacher grants enhance the education of students in the Harrisonville School District by encouraging and recognizing new educational approaches and concepts that are not currently funded by the district.

Throughout the 20+ years of the teacher grant program, nearly $156,000 has been presented to teachers. The goal of the program is to enhance the education of Harrisonville students by encouraging and recognizing new educational approaches and concepts that are not currently funded by the district.

Classroom grants were awarded to the following:

• Brandi Bottorf, Stacy Everhart, and Jauna Weber, Parents As Teachers, Early Childhood Center, for funding to provide infant massage classes. The class would be led by an instructor that is trained in infant massage. The guided session would teach parents how to gently massage their baby to promote bonding, relaxation, and healthy development.  

• Kylie Bowman, HES kindergarten teacher, for the purchase of the Guided Phonics and Beyond Focus Lessons Classroom Resource Set to strengthen early literacy instruction. The materials will complement the district’s reading curriculum by providing explicit, hands-on phonics practice that reinforces key foundational skills. This project was made possible through the Marjorie Gardner Elementary Classroom Grant.

• Heather Caldwell, HES kindergarten teacher, for the purchase of manipulatives to support imaginative play and STEM-based learning in the classroom. The materials will provide students with daily opportunities to explore open-ended, yet guided, activities that encourage creativity, problem-solving, and critical thinking. These hands-on tools will also reinforce current learning objectives through play-based, student-centered exploration. This project was made possible through the Velma Stephens Elementary Classroom Grant.

• Sara Doherty, HES special education teacher, for the purchase of individualized resources and task boxes to support students with a wide range of academic needs. The materials will allow students to work independently, with a partner, or with adult guidance in a centers-based learning environment, helping to strengthen skills at their own pace and ability level.

• Macy Evans, HMS science teacher, for the purchase of microscopes that connect to a computer and can be projected onto the classroom screen. This technology will allow for more guided, whole-class instruction as students explore cell structures and division. The grant was funded through the Class of 1993 Classroom Grant, made possible by the Homecoming Huddle Up giving campaign.

• Sam Lenkiewicz and Abigail Funk, HMS science teachers, for the purchase of a Life-Size Torso and Skeleton to help students learn how the human body maintains homeostasis, and how a disruption in one system can lead to a disruption in other systems. Students will also learn how the unique structures throughout our bodies directly correlate to the functions that they serve. The grant was funded through the Class of 1975 Classroom Grant, made possible by the Homecoming Huddle Up giving campaign.

• Michael Norman, HMS communication arts teacher, for the purchase of class sets of novels to support his effort to build a stronger reading community among students. After dedicating time each day to reading aloud with classes, Norman has seen a renewed excitement for reading and increased student engagement. This project was made possible through the Class of 2002 Classroom Grant, supported by the Homecoming Huddle Up giving campaign. 

• Amy Kump, HHS science teacher, for the purchase of digital cameras to support hands-on learning in Forensics and other science classes. The cameras will allow students to properly document, photograph, and collect evidence during simulated crime scenes, a key component of the Forensics curriculum. They will also be used to capture photographic evidence of labs and classroom activities across multiple departments now that phone cameras are no longer available for student use. This project was made possible through the Cade Filer Classroom Grant

• Ann Hammonds and the McEowen 3rd Grade Team, for the purchase of Scholastic News 3 magazine subscriptions to enhance nonfiction reading instruction. Each student will receive 20 issues throughout the school year, providing engaging, age-appropriate content that builds comprehension, critical thinking, and discussion skills. The magazines will also support collaborative learning as students read, analyze, and discuss articles individually, in pairs, and in groups—helping strengthen problem-solving and teamwork skills.

Cade Filer Classroom Grant

One grant in the amount of $1,000 will be awarded each year (or two $500 grants). The grant will be restricted to equipment/resources that can be used year after year instead of disposable or one-time uses. This grant is funded through an endowment from family and friends in the memory of Cade Filer.

Spring 2008 Recipient
Nancy Cummings, Harrisonville Elementary School, 2nd Grade

Fall 2008 Recipient
Kim Redinger, Jason Vaughn, Lindsey Weisz and Zach Sherman, HMS

Spring 2009 Recipient
Heather Caldwell, Harrisonville Early Childhood Center, Kindergarten

Fall 2009 Recipient
Brenda Foerschler, Harrisonville Elementary School, Title I Math

Spring 2010 Recipient
Preschool teachers, Harrisonville Early Childhood Center

Fall 2010 Recipient
April Schoenberg, Harrisonville Elementary School

Spring 2011
No grant awarded

Fall 2011 Recipient
Tonya Ours & Darla Six, McEowen Elementary School

Spring 2013 Recipient
Curtis Clark, Harrisonville Middle School 

Fall 2013 Recipients
Amelia Selsor, Harrisonville Elementary School
Emily Terwilliger, Harrisonville High School

Spring 2014 Recipient
Jodi Fischer, Harrisonville Early Childhood Center  

Spring 2015 Recipient
Ann Hammonds, Harrisonville Elementary School  

Fall 2015 Recipient
Pam Long, Harrisonville Middle School   

Spring 2016 Recipient
Darla Six, McEowen Elementary School  

Fall 2016 Recipient
Jenny Wickstrom, HHS  

Spring 2017 Recipient
Brian Graber, Harrisonville Elementary School  

Fall 2017 Recipient
Marshall Streit, Cass Career Center  

Fall 2019 Recipient
Jenny Wickstrom, HHS
Shannon Lineberry, HHS  

Fall 2020 Recipient
David Jefferies, McEowen

Fall 2021 Recipient
Michelle Lloyd, HHS

Fall 2022 Recipient
Lindsey Thorpe, HES

Fall 2023 Recipient
No Grant Awarded

Fall 2024 Recipients
Tammy Barker, HMS
Jamie Garrison & Molly Witherspoon, ECC

Fall 2025 Recipient
Amy Kump, HHS

One grant in the amount of $750 will be awarded each year. The grant will be restricted to a grant to benefit an elementary school. This grant is funded through an endowment from family and friends in the memory of Velma Stephens.  

Fall 2015
Rebecca Reeser, McEowen Elementary School   

Fall 2016 Recipient Missy Eddleman, McEowen Elementary School  

Fall 2017 Recipient Wendy Courter, McEowen Elementary School  

Fall 2018 Recipient
Caitlin Jimenez & Catherine Miller, McEowen Elementary School

Fall 2019 Recipient
Kathy DeVore, McEowen Elementary School  

Fall 2020 Recipient
Audra Bross, Harrisonville Early Childhood Center

Fall 2021 & 2022 Recipient
Caitlin Jimenez, McEowen Elementary School

Fall 2023
No recipient

Fall 2024
Becky Sumner, HES

Fall 2025
Heather Caldwell, HES

The Marjorie Gardner Elementary Classroom Grant will fund grant requests from Harrisonville Schools teachers who teach kindergartners to third-graders. Funded grants must support initiatives focused on reading or innovative education — trying new methods or implementing original or creative ideas to support student learning. The annual grant(s) will be in the amount of $1,000 with the opportunity for an additional $2,500 based on the principal’s recommendation to scale the program or idea over time.

Fall 2024
Maggie Knight, HES

Fall 2025
Kylie Bowman, HES