WACO, Texas — Eighteen Central Texas school districts received $60,000 in grants divided among them for technology upgrades, according to the Education Service Center for Region 12.

ESC Region 12 Executive Director Dr. Jerry Maze said grants like these are normally given as surprises in the spring but COVID-19 precautions didn’t make that possible.

“While we always enjoy surprising the teachers and students with these grants in person, we are following in the steps of educators, using technology to make these award presentations exciting and memorable”, said Maze. “We continue to be amazed at the creative, innovative methods that educators come up with to use technology as a tool for instruction that is enticing, relevant and meaningful to their learners.”

The districts that received the grants are listed below.

China Spring ISD’s Elementary School received $10,000 to fund their project, “Brining Tech to Rec,” which will utilize an indoor protection system to create a digital interactive playground.

Corsicana ISD’s Collins Intermediate School received $4,694 for “MaKey Makeying Vocabulary Instruction Easy” by providing teachers and students with hands-on, interactive content that can be accessed on-demand.

Hill County Shared Services Arrangement (SSA) and member districts (Abbott ISD, Aquilla ISD, Covington ISD, Bynum ISD, Gholson ISD, Hubbard ISD, Itasca ISD, Malone ISD, Mount Calm ISD, Penelope ISD, Whitney ISD) received $10,000 for their project “Assistive Technology (AT) Makerspace.” The awarded funds will be used to expand the AT Lab in order to provide custom-made AT devices that will increase functional capabilities and help maintain least restrictive environments for special education students.

Hillsboro ISD’s Elementary School received $10,000 to increase information retention through their project, “Fusing Academic Gaps with Osmos,” which will provide activities to stimulate multiple areas of the brain.

Killeen ISD’s Richard E. Cavazos Elementary School received $1,999 to integrate 3D printing into the curriculum, “Making Design Thinkers and Problem Solvers in 3D” by offering a hands-on approach to prepare students for life and work in the digital era.

La Vega ISD’s 4th – 12th grade received $9,300 to expand STEM thinking while “Learning to Fly” through a variety of engaging hands-on applications.

Rapoport Academy Pre-K and Meyer High School received $9,996 to “Design, Animate, Read” an illustrated book and animated videos to help develop cross-communication between high school and Pre-K students and staff.

Waco ISD’s Kendrick Elementary School received $4,758 to fund their project, “iLearn by OSMOsis,” which will provide students with hands-on technology opportunities that will increase higher-level critical thinking skills through problem solving and object manipulation.