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Funded Projects

The Brookfield Education Foundation is developing a solid history of funding projects that will benefit the town. Click on the links below to read more about projects that the Foundation has supported.

Full Grants

Mini-Grants

  • Shakespearan Actors Workshop
  • TI Smartview Emulator Software
  • QuarkXpress software for design, layout, and publishing of Brookfield High School newspaper
    Requested by Jessica Block
  • IRIS scanning pen for enhancing special reading instruction at Whisconier Middle School
    Requested by Tamara Priestley, Laurie Iovanno

Arbor Day/Earth Day

The Brookfield Open Space Legacy, Inc. (BOSLI) and Brookfield Conservation Commission held an Arbor Day/Earth Day celebration at Huckleberry Hill Elementary School on April 27th, partially funded by the Brookfield Education Foundation. The celebration provided a variety of environmental activities, from building bluebird houses to planting pansies. Presentations by Gerri Griswold, a.k.a. “The Bat Lady” and master gardener Kathy Wandelmaier were additionally offered, all free to the public.
In addition, BOSLI unveiled recent improvements the land trust has made to the Huckleberry nature trail located behind the school. The Brookfield Education Foundation provided funds for wildlife-friendly shrubs along the trail, as well as outdoor signage identifying trees, shrubs, and plants. These improvements will markedly enhance both the educational opportunities available to Huckleberry students and the ease with which they can be utilized.
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Huckleberry Hill Elementary School "Rise & Shine" Fitness Walk

BEF provided funding for pedometers for the Rise & Shine Fitness Walk at Huckleberry Hill Elementary School. This three-month before school program stressed the education of our students, parents, Huckleberry staff, senior citizens and community businesses about wellness, health and exercise. The program provided opportunity for students, their siblings and parents, HHES staff, and Brookfield Senior citizens to be physically fit by walking the hallways of HHES. The program began in 2007, and add ed pedometers this year, to enhance participant education.
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Visual Presenter

Innovative technology will be helping first graders learn from their work and other work. A visual presenter is a color video camera mounted on a moveable arm that is positioned over a large base on which objects can be placed. The teacher and students then look together at student work, texts and illustrations immediately. For example, it will be used to share examples of descriptive language in a picture book, and to share and compare the illustrations in picture books. This can all be done in real time, as the lesson occurs and ideas are bouncing from child to child.
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Literacy Program Funded

A grant from the Brookfield Education Foundation has funded the inaugural year of “Hand in Hand” – a literacy program at Huckleberry Hill Elementary School. Principal Sharon Beitel, Assistant Principal Matthew Salvestrini and Librarian Maureen FitzPatrick have provided tremendous encouragement and support for the establishment of “Hand in Hand.” Retired teacher Dottie Miles is the program coordinator.

Twenty-eight volunteers — senior citizens, parents and high school students — will enhance the learning of developing readers and writers. Each trained volunteer will spend an hour a week inviting one child into the world of books and written language. Literacy tutors will demonstrate not only reading and writing but also citizenship, showing their students by example what it means to give to others.

“Hand in Hand” is based on Help America Read, a program and handbook for volunteers, by Gay Su Pinnell and Irene C. Fountas They cite research showing that tutored students made greater academic gains than might have been expected and greater gains than students who were not tutored. Structured ongoing training for the volunteers is a cornerstone of the program.
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Shakespearan Actors Workshop

Two actors from the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Artist-in-Residence Program will hold a 1/2 day workshop for 5th and 6th grade humanities students at Whisconier Middle School. Students will explore the social and historical contexts for Shakespeare's plays in a learning environment similar to that of a professional rehearsal. This workshop will supplement the Shakespeare Unit of the Humanities curriculum. The workshop was held April 2nd, 2007. At the end of the unit, students performed their own version of Romeo and Juliet for family and friends. This mini-grant was awarded to humanities teacher Marisol Cappello at Whisconier Middle School.
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TI Smartview Emulator Software

TI Smartview is software that emulates TI graphing calculators. It displays an exact representation of the graphing calculator along with keypress history and 3 different simultaneous calculator display views (e.g. Y= editor, table, graph, stat plot, list, window). When used in conjunction with Smartboards (touch-sensitive whiteboards), it will enable teachers to press virtual calculator buttons displayed on the whiteboard and have the emulator display on the whiteboard change just as if a giant graphing calculator is embedded in the whiteboard. This mini-grant provides for 3 copies of the software to be purchased for 3 math classrooms for use by 5 math teachers spanning subjects from Algebra I through Honors Calculus. This mini-grant was awarded to math teacher Dana Cook at Brookfield High School.
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BEF Funds Birds! Program at the Library

Birds!, The Brookfield Library's special Spring 2007 program series was sponsored in part by a grant from the Brookfield Education Foundation. The bi-weekly program included guest lecturers, as well as discussions on Project FeedWatch, birdscaping, North American birds of prey, "bid-brained questions, and bird habitats (including the back yard).
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Operation Respect Banner

Respect for one another is a focal point for Huckleberry Hill Elementary School. "Every teacher is committed to promoting respect within classrooms and the school community. Respect needs to be seen not only in actions, but in words, from adults to children, adults to adults, and children to children," according to Pat Walsh, Chairperson of Operation Respect at HHES. This program will be formally kicked off with a school-wide assembly in November.

The Operation Respect banner was made by Dan McKee, Designs & Signs, Brookfield, and the donation was facilitated by the Brookfield Education Foundation.
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BEF Donates Funds to Start Up Key Club at BHS

A group of ambitious Brookfield High School students have decided to launch a new community service group at the school. Key Club, the youth division of Kiwanis International, has been a part of student life at Danbury High for more than 25 years. Clubs also have been started at New Milford and New Fairfield. Now with the help of funding from the Brookfield Education Foundation, Key Club will have a home at BHS as well.

Kiwanis International was founded in 1915 in Detroit and is headquartered in Indianapolis. Kiwanis is a thriving organization of service- and community-minded individuals who support children and young adults around the world. Key Club is the oldest and largest service program for high school students. What makes Key Club so successful is the fact that it is a student-led organization that teaches leadership through serving others. Today, Key Club exists on almost 5,000 high school campuses, primarily in the United States and Canada but has also stretched to other parts of the globe. The organization’s motto is “Caring – Our Way of Life”. Projects focus primarily on children, but also on senior citizens.

Since one of the goals of the club is to develop leaders, the structure is similar to that of a business. There are officers and chairmen, regular meetings, and agendas to file with Kiwanis. An extra benefit is the support of a larger organization and connection to the other clubs in Northern Fairfield County. Jackie Calder is one of the Club’s founders and officers. “I am very excited that we are starting this club and that the BEF supports us in this effort. We have done a number of fundraising activities to raise the required funds to apply for membership with Kiwanis,” says Jackie. Kara Ruskin and Alison Hourani, also founders and officers, add that “Key Club will be a good chance for BHS students who are looking for community service opportunities to join in the fall of ‘06.” All of the new members express their sincere thanks to those who have helped to get the Club started. For more information, contact Jackie Calder via email at calder1@sbcglobal.net. Key Club’s Web site is www.keyclub.org.
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Capturing Kids Hearts

We are providing seed money for a schoolwide teen leadership program at Brookfield High School. This program was passionately presented to us by a Vice Principal and two teachers from the school, who have been through this program, and are implementing the strategies to develop teen leaders in their classrooms daily. As one of them said, "You can't capture a kid's mind until you have their heart". By helping to develop self esteem and leadership skills, we are supporting the love of learning.
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Brookfield High School
TV & Video Production Studio

Brookfield High school now has a digital video production studio thanks to funding by The Brookfield Education Foundation. The studio is located in the Media Center at the high school, and is available for school as well as community use. The equipment funded by the grant includes both hardware and software as well as peripherals needed for remote filming and integration with Channel 17.
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Goodrich Donation of Lab Tables

In 2004, Goodrich was consolidating their Shelton, CT facility. A Brookfield resident who is a Goodrich employee contacted the Brookfield Education Foundation, offering a donation of thirteen "gently used" lab tables. The Brookfield School district welcomed the donation, worth $650.
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Reading Program at Brookfield High School

The Brookfield Education Foundation has contributed $400 toward an honorarium for Mordecai Gerstein, author of The Old Country. All high school students read the book during the summer in 2005. Mr. Gerstein came to Brookfield in September and led discussions and activities designed to engage the entire school in an extensive study of the novel.

The Foundation awarded the contribution in response to a funding request from Sydnye Cohen, the Library Media Specialist at Brookfield High School.
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ADL Program at Brookfield High School

The Anti Defamation League's anti name calling, bullying and harassment program — Names Can Really Hurt Us — was presented to Brookfield High School juniors and seniors last year. This valuable and popular program was in jeopardy of elimination this year for budgetary reasons. Thanks in part to our lead sponsor, McCaffrey Real Estate, the Foundation is able to bring this program back for a second year. McCaffrey Realty has generously offered to match the contribution made by the Brookfield Education Foundation so every dollar donated generates two dollars for this program. Special thanks also to the League of Women Voters of Brookfield Connecticut who hosted the Conversations about Education forum where the need to provide funds to continue this program was discussed
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Brookfield Town Library Computer Equipment

The Brookfield Education Foundation helped secure a $25,000 grant from Praxair’s Library Links program for the Brookfield Town Library. The grant made it possible for the library to install new computers and printers for use by library patrons and staff. The computers and printers that were previously used by the library were donated to town civic groups and individuals.
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Brookfield Historical Society

The Brookfield Education Foundation will contribute matching funds to renovate the Brookfield Historical Society Blacksmith Shop. This renovation will be part of a major renovation of the Gurski Farm property. The blacksmith shop will house year round education programs for the school children of Brookfield, as well as the Brookfield community at large. There will be two blacksmiths that will demonstrate how tools were made during that era.
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