Foundation to award more than $20K to Bulloch County teachers

This is a press release from Bulloch County Schools.

16 innovative projects receive grant funding for fall 2025

The Bulloch County Foundation for Public School Education awarded more than $20,000 in grant funding to 16 innovative classroom projects on October 9, during the Bulloch County Board of Education’s regular session.

Twice each year in the fall and the spring, the Foundation solicits Bulloch County Schools’ educators to submit applications to its innovation grant program with funding amounts up to $1,

500. This fall 35 applications were received. After a thorough review by the Foundation’s grant committee, which is made up of five members from its board of trustees, the committee scored the applications based on a rubric to determine its 16 recipients.

These are the recipients of $20,462 for Fall 2025:

• $1,450: Powered by Pod & Pen by Amanda Jackson & Peyton Carter of Langston Chapel Middle 
• $715: Lights, Bubbles, Pop: Illuminating the Path to Literacy by Joanna Akins of Portal Elementary
• $415.28: Every Seat Counts;Promoting Self-Regulation by Katherine McCombs of Sallie Zetterower Elementary
• $1,150: Empowering Our Odyssey by Macy Tankersley of Mattie Lively Elementary 
• $1,270: The Power Cycle Challenge by Matthew White of Southeast Bulloch Middle 
• $1,500: Read, Reflect, Relate: Counseling Book Clubs for Literacy and Social & Emotional Learning by Diedre Anthony of Langston Chapel Elementary 
• $1,400: Expanding Musical Opportunities Through Technology: A Synthesizer by Lee Collins & Sergio Arreguin of Statesboro High School
• $1,100: Recording Device – Scoring & Receiving by Chris Wickstrom of Statesboro High School
• $1,490.44: Cooking Up Confidence – A Recipe for Learning bu Kaylin Brockman, Rachel Boggs, & Jinci Evans of Portal Elementary 
• $1,485: Animals & Authors Applying Science Standards Through Expository Text: A Hands-on Approach by Ciara Sims of Brooklet Elementary 
• $1,124.67: The RESET Project: Regulate, Empower, Soothe, Engage & Thrive by Melanie Thatcher & Shana Richey of Julia P. Bryant Elementary 
• $1,472.60:Plastic Practice Makes Perfect People by John Gleissner of Portal Middle High School
• $1,450.00: Increasing Scores in Advanced Placement Mathematics by Jenny Scott & Tiffany Ward
  of Statesboro High School
• $1,440: Hands-on Learning Building Background Knowledge for Literacy & STEM by Lauren Oglesby & Katie Rushing of Sallie Zetterower Elementary 
• $1,500: Living Systems Lab: Connecting Engineering, Biology & Environmental Science by John Hendrix, Alecia Woods, & Maggie Dent of Portal Middle High School
• $1,500: Community Coffeehouse Concert Series by Hannah Bowers of Mattie Lively Elementary

The Bulloch County Foundation for Public Education is a 501 (c)3 charitable organization which provides college scholarships and academic recognition programs for students and competitive grants and teacher of the year monetary awards for faculty in Bulloch County Schools. The Foundation provides a way for individuals, businesses, industries, and local civic organizations to invest in local education programs that benefit public, charter, private, and home schooled students.

The Foundation’s major fundraising campaigns are the Statesboro 5K Turkey Trot and Bulloch County Schools’ payroll deduction option for its employees. Individuals and businesses may make a tax deductible contribution by contacting the Foundation by telephone or mail or by using the online donation button on the Statesboro 5K Turkey Trot’s race website at bullochschools.org/Foundation.
This is the Foundation’s work in the school district and community since 2006:

• Since 2006, the Foundation has funded more than 316 innovative teacher grants totaling more than $406,000 to fund learning experiences for Bulloch County children.
• Since 2013, the Foundation has been the underwriting sponsor for Bulloch County Schools’ REACH Georgia Scholars program, providing annual seed capital to ensure that the district’s selected scholars, now totalling 62, receive a $10,000 college scholarship upon graduation and successful completion of the program. To date the Foundation has invested $90,000 in this endeavor, which has helped make college possible for graduates, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college.
• Since 2009, the Foundation has provided $26,250 in monetary awards to Bulloch County Schools’ district-level and school-level teachers of the year.
• The Foundation is also the underwriting sponsor for the STAR Student/STAR Teacher program for Bulloch County’s five participating public and private schools.