Murray Education Foundation

Empowering the Next Generation of Murray Learners and Leaders.

DOUG PERRY

Rewarding Hard Work…

Murray Moments

Grant Elementary 5th Grade Teacher Goldie Lundeen doesn’t like to let effort and achievement go unnoticed. That’s why for her MEF grant, she was able to purchase art supplies that are typically beyond her classroom budget.

She encourages her students to apply their knowledge about perspective, color, and tone in a relaxed environment on Fridays. Through it, she has recognized that new friendships are forged through conversation and a collaboration of ideas.

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MEF partners with the community to fund educator grants that help students grow.

Merging Hard into Fun…

Murray Moments

The subjects of Art and Math don’t seem like they belong together… and yet, for Grant Elementary Kindergarten Teacher Lyndsee Wheeler the answer is in brain synergy!

That’s because she’s discovered one great way to help kids learn something hard is to engage both halves of the brain – the analytic and the creative. This amalgamation of the technical and inspirational sparks interest, embeds retention skills, and makes the process more relevant and fun for students.

So, it’s no surprise her MEF Grant funding request was for good old-fashioned card stock, colored pencils, paints, stencils, and binding materials. These tools are simple, but what she does with them is magical and miraculous for her students.

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MEF partners with the community to fund educator grants that help students grow.

Making Room for Wellness…

Murray Moments

Wellness rooms, calming corners, and Zen Den’s play an important role at each school, offering students a safe space to manage emotions or behaviors when they become barriers to learning.

At Horizon Elementary, Social Worker Chelsea Strong used Murray Education Foundation funding to outfit her Zen Den with items that help kids self-regulate for a few minutes before returning to their studies.

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MEF partners with the community to fund educator grants that help students grow.

Knitting a Mitten of Learning…

Murray Moments

Grant Elementary’s Jennifer Frampton recently read The Mitten to her kindergarten class. This classic Ukrainian fairy tale follows a boy who loses a mitten that his mother knitted for him in the forest. One by one, different animals climbed inside to keep warm for the Winter until the mitten was full. Go here to learn what happens next

students coloring

Mrs. Frampton used MEF Grant funding to purchase paint brushes, mitten paper, colored pencils, and a tracer kit to create more interactive storytelling for The Mitten and other stories. Once they paint their mittens, students will place one on a collective poster and take the other home.

Integrated learning, including a weave of literature and art in this example, helps children knit different mental interpretations of stories and opens their minds to different possibilities for themselves.

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MEF partners with the community to fund educator grants that help students grow.

Congratulations, 2022 Laura Baker Scholarship Recipients

Announcements

Cyndi Ralston, Dr. Baker, Shelley Phillips, Jennifer Ketchoyian

Murray Education Foundation announced its recipients of the Laura Baker Professional Development Grant. 

Named and founded in memory of one of Murray City School District’s outstanding community leaders – including 22 years of service on the Murray Board of Education – Laura Baker was an influential advocate of professional development among Murray educators. 

Though she passed away in 2011, her legacy for the love of learning continues in the recipients of the annual grants given in her name. Approved by the family of Laura Baker and administered annually through the Murray Education Foundation, here are the 2022 recipients:

  • Shelley Phillips, Hillcrest Jr. High, Special Education Teacher
  • Cyndi Ralston, Liberty Elementary, Social Worker
  • Jennifer Ketchoyian, Murray High School, Social Worker

Congratulations to our recipients who will utilize their scholarship funding to attend professional development opportunities not otherwise available to them.

2023 Pinnacle Nominations Open

Announcements

maria stump accepting award

Murray Education Foundation (MEF) has opened nominations for its 20th Annual Pinnacle Awards recognition, honoring outstanding MCSD educators, a classified employee, and a volunteer.

Nominations are being accepted through Friday, January 27, 2023 from anyone in the Murray community, including parents, students, Murray citizens, and district personnel.

There are two ways to nominate your deserving MCSD teacher, employee, or volunteer:

  1. Go here to complete our simple digital form, or
  2. You can also download and complete a printed form found here

All applicants and winners are reviewed and chosen by MEF committee and board members. Recipients are recognized at an awards celebration (March 16, 2023) where they receive a bronze statuette, a $1000 cash award, and a gift basket.

If you have questions, contact Jeanne Habel, MEF Executive Director, at jhabel@murrayschools.org