2023 Forsyth County Teacher Grants Announced

The Winston-Salem Foundation is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2023 Forsyth County Teacher Grants to support professional development opportunities for K-12th grade teachers in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.

Recipients were selected by a committee comprised of professional educators who make awards in support of innovative and results-oriented educational experiences for teachers to improve their teaching ability and enhance the subject or content being taught in the classroom.

A total of $86,687.38 was granted to the following 47 teacher grant recipients:

• Alexis Callender – East Forsyth High School – $2,400 to support culturally responsive student activities and educator professional development initiatives 
• Allison Horkey – Lewisville Elementary School – $800 to host a Duke Energy Science Day program
• Amanda Malatlian – Atkins Academic & Technology High School – $795 to participate in an online learning cohort for The Science of Memory and Attention for the math classroom 
• Amy Clay – Wiley Middle School – $1,094.73 to attend the Southeastern School Behavioral Health Conference
• Andrea Slusher – Lewisville Elementary School – $2,500 to implement a research-based walking classroom model to improve student physical, mental, and academic success  ‍
• Andrew Marshall – Lewisville Middle School – $2,500 for educational travel to Belize and Guatemala  ‍
• Angie Watkins – Paisley IB Middle School – $2,500 to attend the Innovative Schools Summit ‍
• Ashley Bartlett – Kernersville Elementary School – $500 for an immersive educational expedition in a national park  ‍
• Ashley Hayes – Union Cross Elementary School – $540 to attend the NC Music Educator Conference  ‍
• Barry Hill – Moore Elementary School – $2,500 to attend the Get Your Teach On Conference  ‍
• Cheryl Whitaker – The Special Children's School – $2,500 to attend the National Council for Exceptional Children Convention  ‍
• Claudia Townsend – Gibson Elementary School – $2,250 to attend The Children and Nature Network Conference  ‍
• Clayton Richter – Parkland IB Magnet School – $2,000 to attend the National Athletic Directors Conference  ‍
• Corie Maffett – East Forsyth Middle School – $2,500 to attend the Teaching Learning Coaching Conference  ‍
• Cynthia Cassidy – WS/FCS Social Work Department – $2,500 to attend the Association of Play Therapy Conference  ‍
• Deeann Kidd – Caleb's Creek Elementary School – $2,100 to attend Orton Gillingham Training ‍
• Dustin Draughn – WS/FCS Instructional Services – $2,500 for instructional materials and support of science classrooms across the WS/FCS district  ‍
• Elizabeth Farrell – Kernersville Elementary School – $1,760.29 to attend the Innovative Schools Summit  ‍
• Ellen Palmer – Atkins Academic & Technology High School – $2,500 to attend an immersive workshop at the Institute for Writing and Thinking  ‍
• Fakhria Luna – R.J. Reynolds High School – $2,500 for educational travel to Morocco  ‍
• Fran Richardson – Meadowlark Elementary School – $2,500 to attend the Reading League Conference  ‍
• Jenna Valentine-Turner – Kernersville Elementary School – $1,586 to attend the Fred Rogers Institute  ‍
• Jennifer Clayton – Cash Elementary School – $1,875 to attend the Innovative Schools Summit  ‍
• Jennifer Lowry – Kernersville Elementary School – $1,890 to attend the National Science Teaching Association Conference  ‍
• Jessica Petree – Southwest Elementary School – $2,500 to attend the National Association for Gifted Children Conference  ‍
• Jodi Sparks – Rural Hall Elementary School – $1,500 to attend Orton Gillingham Training  ‍
• Jonathan Berry – Atkins Academic & Technology High School – $2,459.99 to support an immersive group drumming program to support social and emotional regulation  ‍
• Kathleen O'Connor – The Special Children's School – $2,500 to attend the National Association for the Education of Young Children Conference  ‍
• Maria Glazener – Vienna Elementary School – $2,476.38 to purchase early reading supplemental resources  ‍
• Martin Pruitt – Griffith Elementary School – $850 Orff Schulwerk Level Two Summer Course  ‍
• Mary Epperson – Sherwood Forest Elementary School – $2,180 to attend the Carolina Kodaly Institute for Kodaly Educators of North Carolina  ‍
• Mary Tesh – Ward Elementary School – $628.18 to participate in an online learning cohort for meaningful communication for individuals with autism  ‍
• Melissa Falor – Lewisville Elementary School – $634.54 to provide students with access to cross-curricular robotics and coding education and enrichment  ‍
• Mollie Jenkins – WS/FCS Instructional Services – $2,500 to provide materials and teaching resources for chemistry topics  ‍
• Paige Culver – Meadowlark Elementary School – $1,500 to attend Orton Gillingham Training  ‍
• Rhonda Blackburn – Paisley IB Middle School – $2,500 to attend the Innovative Schools Summit  ‍
• Sandy Cebollero – Sherwood Forest Elementary School – $600 to support professional development in K-12 Mathematics  ‍
• Shardee Petties – Children's Center for the Physically Disabled – $1,213.8 to support the purchase and implementation of the Early Science Curriculum  ‍
• Stephanie McDowell – The Kingswood School – $306.47 to provide a student learning garden  ‍
• Syrita Robinson – Smith Farm Elementary School – $1,500 to attend Orton Gillingham Training  ‍
• Tamara Cables – Southwest Elementary School – $1,973 to attend the National Art Education Association Conference  ‍
• Tammy Barnes – Piney Grove Elementary School – $1,875 to attend the Innovative Schools Summit  ‍
• Tammy Hancock – Vienna Elementary School – $1,999 to attend the American Association of School Librarians Conference  ‍
• Tanya Bear – Lewisville Elementary School – $1,800 to provide students with access to plant and animal educational visits  ‍
• Tanya Neal – Paisley IB Middle School – $2,500 to attend the Innovative Schools Summit ‍
• Terry Howerton – Atkins Academic & Technology High School – $1,100 to connect engineering students at Atkins Academic and Technical High School with opportunities to develop tools for adults with intellectual and developmental differences together through the His Path program  ‍
• Timothy Younts – Lewisville Elementary School – $2,500 to provide students with access to cross-curricular robotics and coding education and enrichment

The following endowment funds held at the Foundation provide the annual funding support for the Forsyth County Teacher Grants: the Sam and Anne Booke Family Trust, the Gaddy Educator Fund, the Doris Joyce Kohfeldt Educator Fund, the Maytrice Walton Fund, and the Blanche Raper Zimmerman Fund.

About the Foundation

The Winston-Salem Foundation strengthens Forsyth County by inspiring giving and linking resources to action. For more than 100 years, the Foundation has partnered with generous community members to build a better future by providing grants and scholarships to nonprofits, students, and educators. The Foundation is also investing significant resources in advancing equity in education and building an inclusive economy to ensure that Winston-Salem can become a place where race no longer predicts life outcomes. The Foundation ended 2021 with more than $770 million in assets and almost $79 million in total grantmaking.