Fundraiser provides grants for Simmons Middle School’s needs
Due to the success of Simmons Middle School’s main fundraiser, called the BUC$ Bounty Hunt, the PTO was able to more than double the classroom grants given to teachers. Originally, PTO had $3,500 allotted for teacher grants, but that amount increased to $8,465.
Robert Abernathy, one of the three 7th grade science teachers who applied for a grant for frogs to be used for dissection said, “The unit we are working on relates to the Human Body Standards from the Alabama Course of Study. In studying the various parts of the human body, it has been proven to be much more effective if the students are able to see a scaled-down version of an organism's anatomy that is similar to ours.”
“The frog dissection unit is a great one to get them involved. While at first some of the students are hesitant, it doesn’t take long before most of them are actively involved, pointing out and identifying organs and their functions,” he said.
According to Abernathy, the expense of the frogs has always been an issue since it is not included in their budget or in AMSTI (Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative) materials. “Thankfully, our PTO was able to help us meet this challenge and fund something that the students will remember for years to come,” said Abernathy.
Other items that were purchased with the PTO-funded grants include four standing desks in 8th grade, an auto blood pressure meter and cuffs for the health room, 16 bouncy bands for 6th grade, sheet music in band, a chemical demo kit for experiments in 8th grade, microphones in the choral department, a Kitchen Aid mixer in Family Living, light filters for the Sunshine and Special Education rooms, an interactive e-book for ELL (English Language Learning) and magazine subscriptions for language arts and social studies.
“Every teacher and faculty member who applied for a grant this school year was granted their request because of the surplus of funds,” said the 2016-2017 SMS PTO President Sabrina Stephens. “Thanks to the generosity and support of our parents, our faculty and our administration during our BUC$ Bounty Hunt fundraiser, we were able to grant these awards to benefit our children.”
At the start of the school year, the PTO undertook the BUC$ Bounty Hunt fundraiser as its main source to fund the PTO budget and expenses including school improvements, teacher grants, classroom support, positive behavior rewards for students, Red Ribbon Week activities and more. During the fundraising, individual incentives, like gift cards, were given out through a drawing and grade-level perks, like free seating in the lunchroom and a sno-cone party, were awarded at certain points in the fundraising. Additionally, families who donated a set amount were recognized in the school’s yearbook, and when the fundraiser’s goal was reached, male coaches, teachers and administrators walked the runway plank in ball gowns during an all-school assembly.
-Submitted by Michelle Berg