photo credit: Jean-Ires Michel
Fifteen Lake Union schools received grants totaling $115,000 from the Versacare Foundation to fund Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education.
In response to the good news, Linda Fuchs, Education director of the Lake Union, says this grant is not the first and previous donations have been valuable in helping educators with student learning. “We have had help with technology in our schools to strengthen them. We’ve had help with special education and flexible seating that allows students to be better learners,” she says. “We are very grateful for the Versacare grant.”
Among the many uses of STEM funds are the purchase of classroom smartboards, providing tablets or Chromebooks for student use, equipping or updating student computer labs, installation of 3D printers and related software, initiating or funding robotics programs, instruction in software coding, and the equipping of chemistry, physics and biology labs, and more.
The STEM grant program is open to every NAD conference- or church-sponsored primary or secondary school and provides funding in three categories:
This is Versacare’s fourth successive year funding STEM grants. To date, they have provided 228 schools with a total of $1,825,000.
Versacare, Inc., is the largest independent private foundation supporting the varied ministries of the Seventh-day Adventist Church with grant funding. A self-funded lay organization, it is comprised of both lay Adventists and present and former Adventist Church employees. It awarded its first grants in 1990, totaling $26,000, to five different Adventist ministries. Since then, it has awarded nearly 1,200 grants totaling over $26,000,000.
For more information about Versacare’s STEM grant program, please visit www.versacare.org.
Lake Union
3 Conferences; 15 schools; $115,000
Illinois Conference
Chicago Christian School - $10,000
Hinsdale Adventist Academy - $10,000
Marion Adventist Christian School - $5,000
Indiana Conference
Cross Street Christian School - $5,000
Indianapolis Junior Academy- $10,000
Indianapolis Southside Christian Academy - $5,000
Northwest Adventist Christian School - $5,000
Michigan Conference
Adelphian Jr. Academy - $5,000
Andrews Academy - $10,000
First Flint Christian School - $5,000
Great Lakes Adventist Academy - $10,000
Grand Rapids Adventist Academy - $10,000
Griggs International Academy - $10,000
Holland Adventist Academy - $10,000
Marquette Elementary School - $5,000
