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Wills Point ISD Education Foundation

(903) 873-5100 ext 7007

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Wills Point ISD Education Foundation

(903) 873-5100 ext 7007

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Grants
    • Giving to Teachers
    • Adopt a Grant
  • Annual Gala
  • Events

It’s almost here!

Our favorite day of the year is just around the corner! Soon we’ll be surprising teachers across the district with funding for their amazing ideas. Keep your eyes (and ears!) open—you never know when the sirens, balloons, and big checks might roll up to your classroom!

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Wills Point ISD Education Foundation in Action

Adopt-a-Grant: Turning teacher ideas into student opportunities.

Adopt-a-Grant is an opportunity for community members, businesses, and organizations to partner with the Education Foundation in supporting our schools. Each year, teachers submit grant applications with creative ideas to enhance student learning. While the Foundation funds as many as possible, additional projects remain unfunded. By “adopting” a grant, you can choose a specific project to fully sponsor, ensuring that teacher’s vision becomes a reality for their students. This program allows the community to see exactly where their dollars go and the difference they make in the classroom.


As a special part of the experience, sponsors are invited to join us during Grant Patrol to personally present the teacher with the grant they supported — seeing the excitement and impact firsthand.

Grants Waiting to Be Adopted

School- High School
Grant Name- Safe, Sensitive, and Hands-On Learning Environment


Total Amount Requested- $800.00

Requester- Chaz Odom

Special education students of the current 12th grade and all future students. Also, 4 Teachers currently.
The number of students is 12. teachers four parents of all students, as well as the community

We currently don't have safe utensils for our special needs students
Skin-safe cutting utensils—kid-safe kitchen tools with blunt tips and serrated edges designed to prevent injuries while allowing students to practice real food prep safely

Fluorescent light covers—fire-rated diffusers that reduce glare, UV exposure, and flicker, creating a calming classroom environment that supports concentration and minimizes headaches

Hands-on math manipulatives—tools like Unifix cubes, number-line mats, balance scales, and counting aids to support tactile and visual math learning

Additional resources, e.g. soft sensory fidget tools or visual aids, to support diverse learning needs and foster a more inclusive classroom.
Enhanced Safety: Students practice real-life skills like safe knife handling without risk. Helps promoting independence and confidence.

Improved Focus & Comfort: Softer lighting reduces visual fatigue and increases classroom comfort, especially for light-sensitive learners.

Better Math Understanding: Manipulatives provide concrete supports for abstract concepts, improving engagement and comprehension.

Inclusive & Calming Spaces: A combination of sensory-friendly lighting and hands-on activities supports diverse learners’ needs.
Aligns with goals for student safety, inclusive learning environments, and hands-on instructional strategies.

Supports well-being (through improved lighting) and 21st-century learning competencies, promoting practical life skills.

Enhances learning especially those with sensory sensitivities or learning differences. have access to effective educational tools.
Provide at least one skin-safe cutting set per group of students to practice cooking or food prep safely.

Adopt

School- Special Programs 

Grant Name- Once Upon a Grant


Total Amount Requested- $365.87
Requester- Beth Grace

65 Students Impacted
As the Wills Point ISD dyslexia population continues to grow, the need for decodable books increases, too.  It is beneficial to read with a partner.  

Information about the Science of Reading continues to develop. As an educational journalist and creator of Sold a Story, Emily Hanford has stated, “Too many students have been taught to look like they can read based on cueing and context of passages.” I don’t want this to happen to our students, and decodable books help.  Decodables allow students to break apart unfamiliar words using techniques from specialized dyslexia training.  

I want my students to not only learn the practices of good readers but also be able to apply classroom knowledge to life outside of a school setting.
A variety of interests and difficulty levels challenge students with topics and abilities. Providing hard-copy books increases opportunities to integrate them with the audiobook app Learning Ally, which is part of the current dyslexia program.
Based on the information shared above, students can use their knowledge to define unfamiliar words, improve their vocabulary, and enhance reading comprehension.
Struggling students will have access to empowerment.  They are more likely to find their niche when exposed to different styles of reading and writing.  This provides the opportunity to accomplish more and be more productive in our community.  
A student is considered successful as they systematically progress through the dyslexia program and, in turn, achieve better grades. Confidence is easy to monitor; however, I believe it will be evident in each individual.    
Jennifer Ozuna, Director of Special Programs, is my advocate.  She tirelessly supports my ideas and implementation. 

Adopt

School- High School Math Department
Grant Name- Math Matters

Total Amount Requested- $1,590.00
Requester- Rachael Manley, Raquel Wooton, Nikki Hamilton, Brett Carpenter, Trenna Gillet, Tammi Whitaker, Molly Weatherred, Jacob Rippy, and Zane Young.

Every student enrolled in a math course at Wills Point High School.

This campus had Delta Math last year, however the memberships have expired.
We need to renew access to DeltaMath for each math teacher. DeltaMath is a powerful tool to help students understand they math concepts, even if they refuse to ask for help. DeltaMath has tools that benefit all stakeholders. It has videos embedded with each concept that fully explain what the students need to know to complete the problems. It also has the fixability for the teacher to differentiate assignments for each student.

Also, It would be amazing if each teacher got $50 to buy math manipulatives for their classrooms. Every student learns differently and it is important to have the materials to aid students in comprehension, whether they are auditory learners or kinesthetic learners.
Delta Math helps our students to prepare for not only the skills they need for our courses, but for formal assessments. These formal assessments include, but are not limited to, TRS, STAAR, SATs, and ASFAB.

The math manipulatives add a layer of support not just for students in 504 or Special Education programs, but students across the board. Manipulatives make learning more tangible for every student in the classroom. This tangible learning will be things they remember when they have seemed to forget everything else we taught them.
Absolutely. Our students will experience ALIGNMENT with state standards, CLARITY of content, and CONSISTENCY of instructional tools.
Make learning accessible for all students and change the culture of "Math is to hard for me."
It is innovative to unitilize manipulatives at the high school level because some might consider it childish. However, we have so many kids that need to always be moving and this gives them an opportunity to use their energies in a positive productive manner. Additionally, bringing it back to the tangible learning piece, we want our students to love to learn and remember what we teach them.

Adopt

School- Primary
Grant Name- LISTENING to LEARN with TonieBox.

Total Amount Requested- $1,300.00
Requester- Alaina Mulkey

19 students
TonieBox itself is is an existing educational tool, but for wills point ISD it will be a new program that is unique and grant worthy! :)
Listening to learn is an innovative early childhood education initiative that integrates the TonieBox interactive audio system into kindergarten. This project uses the TonieBox interactive audio system to build Kindergarten students' literacy, listening comprehension, and language skills through engaging, curriculumn - aligned stories and songs that foster a love for learning. This program creates a joyful learning environment where children develop essential academic and social emotional skills. By intergrating the TonieBox interactive audio system into kindergarten classrooms, this project aims to increase early literacy rates, improve listening comprehension scores, and strenghten language development skills in young learners.
My expectation of outcomes is to help with letter recognition, phonemic awareness, vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and boost classroom participation learning activities.
improving early literacy by increasing percentage of students meeting or exceeding on reading map scores. Enhancing student engagement by using these innovative tools to keep my young learners focused and motivated. Strengthen social - emotional development by giving them confidence and building communication skills and their love for learning.
Early literacy development, Listening and reading comprehension, student engagement, attention and focus, verbal expression and confidence, fostering a love for reading.
Technology - enhanced learning, Multisensory instruction, personalized and differentiated learning, evidence - informed approach.

This project is innovative because it introduces the TonieBox interactive audio system as a technology enhanced, multisensory approach to early learning by combining story telling, music, and interactive play. It engages multiple learning styles while suppoting individualized pacing for diverse learners, including ELL learners and students at risk. It also intergrates age-appropriate educational technology to foster both literacy and digital skills.
I can use pre and post program assesments. I will do a teacher administered story recall and comprehension checks. I will do teacher logs documenting participation in TonieBox activities. I will do daily classroom observations tracking on task behaviors as well. Quanitative and Qualitative observations. 

Adopt

 School- Primary
Grant Name- Building Bright Minds

Total Amount Requested- $1,364.64
Requester- Misty Hoedebeck

19 students, 1 teacher, and 1 paraprofessional

I am seeking funding to provide high-quality building blocks for my Pre-k classroom.  Blocks are an essential early learning tool that promote the growth of the whole child through  hands-on exploration and play. With access to a variety of building materials, children engage in meaningful experiences that build critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration skills.
Block play supports cognitive development by introducing concepts of math, science and engineering such as balance, symmetry, measurement, and problem-solving.  It enhances language development as children share ideas, explain their creations, and work together.  It strengthens social-emotional skills by encouraging cooperation, negotiation, and persistence.  In addition, block  play promotes fine and gross motor development as children manipulate, stack, and construct with different sizes and shapes.
By investing in building blocks, we are providing our youngest learners with opportunities to develop foundational skills that prepare them for future academic success while fostering imagination, confidence, and joy in learning.
Cognitive development, language development, social-emotional skills, fine and gross motor development
This project transforms classic building blocks into powerful learning tools. Instead of just play, blocks become a bridge to math, science, language and social skills. By combining hands-on exploration with guided challenges, children build creativity, collaboration and critical thing--making block play both timeless and cutting-edge.
Success will be measured through teacher observations, student engagement, and documentation of growth in problem-solving, collaboration, and early math/science skills. Photos, student work samples, and brief checklists will tack progress, while family feedback  will provide additional insight into children's learning and enthusiasm. 

Adopt

 School- Junior High
Grant Name- "Engage & Empower: Tools for Creativity, Problem-Solving, and Social Growth at WPJH"

Total Amount Requested- $962.03
Requester- Katrina Glenn

470 Students

This grant proposal seeks funding to provide Wills Point Junior High (WPJH) students with access to a curated set of educational, hands-on materials designed to stimulate creativity, enhance problem-solving, and encourage collaboration and provide social and emotional growth. These resources include building blocks (such as LEGO or engineering kits), mural supplies (paints, colored pencils, butcher paper, posters), a range of 2D and 3D puzzles (logic puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, spatial games), and team-building games (cooperative challenges).
These interactive tools will be integrated into counseling groups, enrichment periods, and common spaces (cafeteria), offering students regular opportunities to engage in activities that develop critical 21st-century skills—creativity, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking—while supporting their emotional well-being and academic engagement.

The purpose of this project is to:
Cultivate problem-solving skills and logical thinking through structured puzzle activities.

Encourage collaborative learning and teamwork through group challenges and building activities.

Promote creative expression and ownership through student-led mural projects that beautify the school and reflect its culture.

Support social-emotional learning by giving students opportunities to engage in low-pressure, cooperative play, brain breaks, and reflection.

Create a positive and inclusive environment that celebrates student effort and innovation.

Expected Outcomes:
Increased student engagement during counseling groups, enrichment periods and common spaces (cafeteria).

Improved teamwork and peer relationships, observed through behavior and participation.

Enhanced spatial, logical, and creative thinking as evidenced through observation and project outcomes.

A more visually engaging and student-centered school environment through displayed murals/posters.

This project supports academic achievement by introducing tactile, inquiry-based learning tools that align with research on kinesthetic and experiential learning. Puzzles and building tasks help reinforce cognitive strategies used in math, science, and problem-solving subjects, complementing core curriculum.

The counselor will facilitate these tools as part of their instructional and social-emotional strategies. The counselor will utilize games and puzzles to enhance school culture and academic focus.

Student-created murals will directly enhance the physical environment, while puzzle zones and building stations will offer structured, purposeful breaks from academic stress. These additions promote mental health, social growth, and motivation.

Artistic projects and team challenges can involve local artists and/or community volunteers, fostering pride and connection between WPJH and the broader community. Final displays can be featured at open houses and community events.

To enhance student engagement and achievement at WPJH by integrating hands-on, collaborative, and creative resources that support cognitive development, social-emotional growth, and school culture. This includes:
Acquiring a variety of building blocks, puzzles, and art supplies.

Organizing structured mural projects and team-building activities.

Embedding these resources into regular learning routines and enrichment activities.

This grant is innovative because it reimagines everyday student spaces as hubs for active learning, collaboration, and expression. Instead of traditional, passive enrichment or free-time activities, this project empowers students to create, build, solve, and lead. It combines STEM tools, artistic outlets, and social learning in one cohesive strategy. By offering diverse types of learning experiences (kinesthetic, visual-spatial, interpersonal), the grant supports whole-child education in a way that’s engaging and adaptable for all learners, especially those who may not excel in traditional academic formats.
It also fosters student agency: students are not just consumers of learning but creators—of solutions, art, and experiences. This model helps schools become dynamic environments of creativity and purpose.

Adopt

 School- High School and Junior High Math Teachers
Grant Name- ThinkSpace - Building Thinking Classrooms

Total Amount Requested- $975.00
Requester- Tammy Whitaker - Instructional Coach

All Math Students at High School and Junior High. All Core Math Teachers: HS - Wooton, Gillett, Hamilton, Weatherred, Carpenter, Manley, Young, Rippy; JH - Mize, Todd, Elerson, Weakley, Bradley, Hogan

Wipebooks are reusable flip chart/whiteboard spaces that can be placed anywhere as needed for the task. These surfaces can be used for temporary anchor charts to provide critical information for the learning in real time or they are perfect for small group discussion and working out the thinking processes with partners or small groups. They can be mounted anywhere in the classroom or in the hallway or any other flexible space turning any space into a dynamic learning environment.

One of the biggest challenges math teachers face today is the lack of thinking skills that students need to tackle any math problem.  Truly, the most important thing is not the correct answer but the processing skills and thinking skills that lead up to it.  Problems and levels of difficulty will always change in any classroom but the critical thinking skills required to meet those challenges are useful every day in every situation.  

Picture a problem on the board that the students don't know how to do or have not been taught to do. Imagine the students in partners or groups of 3 or 4, talking through the steps and/or strategies that could be useful for the task at hand; students writing out their thoughts on the Wipebooks and then trying to prove wrong or correct with the tools they bring to the group.  Trial and error, guessing and checking, drawing pics or graphic aids to visualize the goal or path to get there.  The process, the critical thinking skills, are what we want to help our students develop.  These Wipebooks are a very practical way toward that end.

https://wipebook.com/products/flipchart

Would like to see our teachers integrate brainstorming and problem solving skills, not just for math problems but challenging riddles and puzzles that allow for students to stretch their thinking skills.
The Vision and Mission of WPISD is below.
Vision
Wills Point Independent School district is a community that engages all learners in an exemplary educational program.
We believe every student should be provided a safe learning environment.
We believe every student should have individual learning opportunities.
We believe students should learn to become self-reliant.
We believe students should learn in a technology driven environment.
We believe students should know how to live in a global society.

Mission
The mission of Wills Point Independent School District is to provide all learners with a safe environment and opportunities to become self-reliant, productive members of a technologically-driven, global society.

I believe that this grant request addresses the goal of self-reliance in both the vision and mission statements.  If a student does not know where to begin or continue as they process and work step by step through a problem, then they will not be able to demonstrate that self-reliance.  Students will learn given the opportunity and from each other and with practice that these tools will provide.

The objective of using Wipebooks in the math classroom is to allow space for students to collaborate and work out the thinking processes in various places in the classroom or flexible learning spaces.
I believe the use of Wipebooks to be innovative because it allows blank space on the walls to become collaborative thinking spaces and a very hands-on and practical way to demonstrate thinking and processing.
These wipebooks will be used to develop critical thinking skills as students collaborate and process challenging problems designed to stretch.  The results of that development should show up in improved assessment scores throughout the year.
 

Adopt

School- Middle School
Grant Name- It’s a Math Christmas Party in 6th Grade

Total Amount Requested- $598.62
Requester- Shayla Mullins
Bradley Fleming

6th Grade Math Students - 194 students

Embrace math and the holiday season with 6th Grade Math students. These students will participate in a Christmas-themed project to plan a “Christmas Party.” What a fun way to celebrate learning and the upcoming holiday season! This project-based learning opportunity will enhance students’ communication, problem solving skills, perseverance, and creative-thinking, which are key skills to develop for today’s global society. In addition, this project will put skills that the students have learned throughout the year, such as fractions, decimals, and proportionality into practice through a real-world application.
The purpose of the “Christmas Party Math Project” is to provide 6th grade students with a project-based learning experience that merges mathematics with real-world application and holiday creativity. By embedding core math concepts into a festive, engaging scenario, this project aims to strengthen students’ mastery of fractions, decimals, and proportionality while cultivating essential 21st-century skills such as communication, collaboration, and critical thinking.

By the end of the project, students will be able to:

Apply Mathematical Skills in Real-World Contexts
Use fractions, decimals, and ratios to plan budgets, recipes, and party supplies.
Demonstrate proportional reasoning by scaling quantities, prices, and measurements to meet specific needs.

Enhance Communication and Collaboration
Work effectively in groups to share ideas, negotiate solutions, and present their party plans.
Practice both written and oral communication through proposals, visual displays, and presentations of their final projects.

Develop Problem-Solving and Perseverance
Approach multi-step problems with strategies that include analyzing information, trial and error, and logical reasoning.
Build resilience and persistence by revising plans and calculations as challenges arise.

Strengthen Creative and Critical Thinking
Design a party that incorporates both mathematical accuracy and creativity, making choices about decorations, menus, entertainment, and budgets.
Justify decisions with evidence-based reasoning rooted in mathematical calculations.

Increase Student Engagement and Ownership of Learning
Experience mathematics as relevant and meaningful through an enjoyable, real-world holiday application.
Take responsibility for their learning by making independent and group-based decisions to successfully complete the project.

Build Lifelong Skills for Today’s Global Society
Foster teamwork, time management, and leadership skills that extend beyond the classroom.
Recognize how mathematics connects to daily life, future careers, and global problem-solving.
Through this project-based learning experience, students will apply key 6th grade math skills, such as fractions, decimals, proportionality, in planning a Christmas party from start to finish. This real-world application will not only strengthen their academic achievement, but also foster collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving as they work together toward a shared goal. The project aligns with our Campus Improvement Plan by providing diverse and engaging learning opportunities that connect classroom content to authentic life experiences, while building confidence in students’ ability to use math meaningfully. In celebrating their hard work with the party they planned, students will experience a positive and supportive learning environment that ignites excitement for learning and reinforces both social and academic excellence, as we celebrate their achievements, hard work, and upcoming Christmas break.

Adopt

School- Woods Intermediate
Grant Name- Hands-On Creative Play Supplies

Total Amount Requested- $993.55
Requesters- Elizabeth Rogers, Khristina Fincher, Julie Valentine

60 Gifted/Talented students


Buy funding supplies such as building materials, art tools, STEM kits, and open-ended craft items. This grant would directly support differentiated instruction and enrichment tailored to the needs of the gifted and talented students.
These resources are essential for nurturing their unique abilities and preparing them to become the creative problem-solvers and leaders of tomorrow.
Hands-on creative play is a vital component of the educational experience for gifted and talented elementary students. It supports the development of essential cognitive, social-emotional, and problem-solving skills in ways that traditional instructional methods often cannot. When these learners are provided with open-ended, tactile materials and opportunities for imaginative exploration, they engage more deeply with content, make interdisciplinary connections, and develop higher-order thinking skills.
Improved collaboration and communication: Many gifted students benefit from activities that help them build teamwork and interpersonal skills.
Creative play offers alternative avenues for expression and success for students who may also have learning differences, allowing them to demonstrate strengths outside of traditional academic settings.
Collaborative play scenarios provide structured opportunities for social growth and leadership development.
Focusing on academic achievement, the hands-on creative play will help support the development of essential cognitive, social-emotional, and problem-solving skills of the gifted and talented.
The Woods community.
The tactile materials and opportunities for imaginative exploration will aim to increase the students' attendance rate by making learning in the GTT departments exciting and unique.
Student behavior and performance with the
A GT student needs to be critical and divergent, and self-directed. With these supplies, the students will have increased engagement and motivation accessing the materials for building, designing, and inventing, fueling intrinsic motivation, which is crucial for maintaining the enthusiasm and curiosity of advanced learners. Hands-on creative play actively engages creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills through experimentation and exploration, which is how the GTt brain is often stimulated.
The success will be evaluated by both qualitative and quantitative results: collaboration with peers, completion of assigned projects, informal assessments, initiating new ideas, and using the materials in unconventional ways. Feedback and reflections from parents and other teachers, along with interviews with the students, will be welcomed in evaluating the success of the hands-on projects.
Elizabeth Rogers, 2nd Grade GT teacher, Julie Valentine, 3rd Grade GT teacher, Khristina Fincher, 4th Grade GT teacher. We can take a survey at the end of the year, asking parents their views on the GT program this year.

Adopt

School- Primary
Grant Name- Hands-on STEM-Learning Through Sensory Trays and Kinetic Sand

Total Amount Requested- $542.00
Requester- Missy Dias

600+ Students

Hands-on Interactive Learning to support and differentiated instruction, with active participation and an inclusive environment
3 Large Sensory Trays will be purchased along with 1- 24lb box of Blue Kinetic Moon Sand and 2- 12lb boxes of Natural Kinetic Moon Sand
Purchase sensory trays and kinetic sand for classroom STEM stations.

Introduce students to the materials with guided STEM challenges (e.g., “Build the tallest tower that can stand for 10 seconds”).

Rotate trays through small groups to ensure all students participate.

Integrate challenges into science, math, and engineering units throughout the year.

Document student growth with photos, reflections, and assessment rubrics.
By funding this project, the Education Foundation will help create a dynamic, inclusive, and engaging STEM environment where all students can thrive. Sensory trays and kinetic sand will transform abstract concepts into hands-on learning experiences, sparking curiosity and building foundational STEM skills that will last a lifetime.
Engage 100% of students in hands-on STEM activities using sensory trays and kinetic sand at least twice per week.

Increase student understanding of STEM concepts (engineering, measurement, scientific observation) as measured by classroom assessments and project rubrics.

Enhance collaboration and problem-solving skills by incorporating small-group building and exploration challenges.

Provide inclusive sensory-friendly learning opportunities that support students with special needs.
I aim to create a more hands-on experience through play and learning, reinforcing what students learn in their classrooms with their teachers.
Student participation and engagement logs.

Pr- and post-student surveys on interest in STEM.

Teacher-created rubrics assessing problem-solving and collaboration.

Examples of student work (structures built, data collected, reflections).

Adopt

Grant has been adopted!


School- Junior High
Grant Name- 2025-2026 Life Skills Field Trips

Total Amount Requested- $394.00
Cynthia Melton, Nichole Sadler, Kasie Meeks, Deedra Evans

22 Students

Getting students more involved in a variety of community-based learning experiences
The WPISD JH Life Skills Classroom would like to have opportunities to attend more community-based learning experiences. Students currently participate in Special Olympic activities that are out in the community with peers at local stadiums, bowling alleys, etc. These are excellent outings and demonstrate extraordinary success in student growth;however, visiting a variety of settings will further expand intercultural understanding. These real-world situations will give students a chance to build self-confidence, develop problem-solving skills, and use knowledge out in the field. When visiting McDonald's, students will be able to order from the menu (either in hand or on the wall), pay for their items, engage in conversation at the restaurant, and take their time eating before heading to the following location. Visiting Yesterland with their new PE Partners gives them a chance to participate in outdoor activities and engaging demonstrations in a different setting that opens the door to critical thinking and observation skills. Students will work alongside PE Partners in discussions about the new experience at this location. Students will write/build Valentine Cards to mail out to friends and/or family to experience the process of sending and receiving mail.
Taking students to various locations within the community and beyond. These are some places that offer a different experience and allow the students to participate in real-world situations. The development of interpersonal skills while making personal choices will allow students to continue advancing classroom applications.
These opportunities will provide students with a positive learning environment to achieve social, emotional, and academic excellence.

Students will be monitored at all times while leaving campus.
This grant would allow increased community-based learning opportunities in a variety of locations to expand students' knowledge and skills.


Adopt

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