Flint Energies and its philanthropic arm, the Flint Energies Foundation awarded a total of $20,000 to teachers for creative and innovative lesson plans in the tenth year of the co-op’s Bright Ideas program.
 
Winning teachers were surprised in their classrooms by the Bright Ideas Prize Brigade representatives from Flint Energies with flowers, balloons, gift bags and “big” checks on November 9 and 10.  The Bright Ideas program distributes grants of up to $1,000 for teachers to implement creative, innovative projects or lessons with students.  The grants are not available for professional development or SmartBoard or iPad requests.
 
This year $20,000 in Bright Ideas grants were given to 22 winning teachers and their team members at schools in Houston, Crawford, Taylor, Marion, Schley, Sumter and Bibb counties.
 
Manager of Public Relations, Marian McLemore, stated, “Bright Ideas is a major part of Flint’s commitment to education.  Our Foundation is pleased to support innovative and creative lesson plans that benefit students in the communities we serve. We’re dedicated to the teachers throughout the Middle Georgia area who are inspiring their students beyond the pages of their textbooks. These grants are just a small token of our appreciation to these hard-working professionals.”
 
Earlier this year, Flint Energies and the Foundation invited teachers who teach grades K-12 at public or private schools located in the co-op’s service territory to apply for the grants.  Flint Energies service area encompasses parts of Bibb, Chattahoochee, Crawford, Dooly, Harris, Houston, Macon, Marion, Monroe, Muscogee, Peach, Schley, Sumter, Talbot, Taylor, Twiggs and Upson counties.  In September, the Cooperative received 63 grant applications, totaling nearly $70,000 from teachers.  A panel of retired educators served as judges and reviewed the applications.  The top scoring lesson plan ideas were funded.
 
2015 Bright Ideas grant winners:

·         Keturah Rogers, MATH-tastic Playground, Crawford County Elementary, Roberta, $1,000.00
·         Stacy Perry, Infectious Diseases in Africa, Crawford County Middle, Roberta, $1,000.00
·         Bergen Poole, Scientists:  Investigating the World Around Us, Taylor County Primary, Butler, $1,000.00
·         Ashley Waller, Waller’s Wonderful Wizzes Want a Document Camera Center, LK Moss Elementary, Buena Vista, $997.88
·         Tammy Strickland, Sensory Smart Classroom, LK Moss Elementary, Buena Vista, $988.78
·         Robin Hall, Wonderful Writers, Schley County Elementary, Ellaville, $500.00
·         Rebecca Brewer, Flippers, Furlow Charter School, Americus, $989.00
·         Roban Johnson, Using Nooks to Hook ESOL and Other Teen Readers, Academy for Classical Education, Macon, $990.00
·         Sarah Chancellor, Lego to the Library, Heritage Elementary School, Macon, $730.00
·         Sylvia Mitchell, Breakfast with Books, Pearl Stephens Elementary, Warner Robins, $295.82
·         Angela Farley, Native American Festival, Lindsey Elementary, Warner Robins, $1,000.00
·         Gail Lilley, Garden to Table, Lindsey Elementary, Warner Robins, $1,000.00
·         Ginger Caldwell, Marvel Math, Northside Middle School, Warner Robins, $1,000.00
·         Leshan Ferguson, STEM Explorations:  Computer Control & Exploring Renewable Energy, Thomson Middle, Centerville, $1,000.00
·         Rose Kimball, Cutting, Cooking and Crunching Numbers, Westside Christian Academy, Warner Robins, $701.69
·         Gina Hammonds, Outdoor Classroom, Lake Joy Primary, Warner Robins, $1,000.00
·         Sabrina Comeau, Lego Engineering, Lake Joy Primary, Warner Robins, $979.89
·         Sonya Kiefer, GoWrite with GoPro!, Lake Joy Primary, Warner Robins, $926.94
·         Kadie Griger, Creative Cupcakes, Mossy Creek Middle School, Kathleen, $1,000.00
·         Justin Bennett, Agricultural Mechanics in the Hands of Students, Mossy Creek Middle School, Kathleen, $1,000.00
·         Kayleen Mims, Exercise for School Success, David A. Perdue Primary, Warner Robins, $900.00
·         Cheralyn Keily, Rabbit Production:  Academics Undercover, Bonaire Middle, Bonaire, $1,000.00
 
Mary Coffee, a teacher at Eagle Springs Elementary School in Byron, won the online application drawing by submitting her Bright Ideas grant application on Flint’s website.  She received an iPad mini for her classroom.
 
Shelley Greer, a teacher at The Westfield School in Perry, won a digital camera for her classroom in the early bird drawing.
 
Flint Energies began its Bright Ideas program in 2006 and has awarded nearly $135,000 in grant money to teachers for 157 projects teaching more than 4,710 students in Middle Georgia.