Grant Wood Area Education Agency’s College for Kids is a summer program offering advanced level academic and fine arts courses in the college setting to eligible students who have completed 6th, 7th, or 8th grade. During the College for Kids experience, students are offered advanced or specialized curricula, and have the opportunity to further explore a hobby or a topic of interest not typically available in middle school general education.
Through the Marion Foundation Grant Program, scholarships were offered to eligible Vernon Middle School and Marion Home School students for the Summer 2022 College for Kids program.
According to Grant Wood AEA Student Programs Specialist Susie Green, “This grant program has been successful since its formation. The scholarships have not only been rewarding and beneficial to Marion students/families, but together, the Foundation and Grant Wood AEA staff have continued to improve the efficiency of the scholarship process over the years.”
During the summer of 2022, this grant project impacted 37 Marion students: 26 Vernon Middle School students and 11 Marion Home School students. Since 2011 this grant project has impacted 258 Marion students.
When asked about their favorite part of the program MISD students responded:
- “In yoga, I learned a lot of stuff that could help me and my friends with being more happy, and it’s a really good program and there’s a lot of nice people.”
- “Definitely the kindness I’ve been shown by all the teachers; everyone here is really nice. And there’s a lot I’m gonna be able to take with me. Like in this class it was all the leadership papers that we had to write out—it was all really fun—and then for my other classes I had a few papers to take out and I can remember them for the rest of my life.”
The Marion Foundation’s grant program provides teachers an opportunity to receive funding for projects that benefit students in the Marion Independent School District. Grants are made possible because of generous contributions the Foundation receives throughout the year from both businesses and individuals as well as a number of educational funds that are invested with the Foundation for long-term benefit.