Bright Ideas Grants Awarded to Local Educators by Blue Ridge Electric

Newland, North Carolina (November 20, 2009) – As part of its commitment to local education, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation recently presented Bright Ideas grants totaling $1,600 to three educator teams during “surprise patrols” to the teacher’s schools.

Bright Ideas is an academic grants program sponsored by Blue Ridge Electric in conjunction with North Carolina Electric Membership Corporation and its 26 other member electric cooperatives. Bright Ideas grants help further traditional academic learning by funding innovative scholastic projects that go beyond available school funding.
Avery County grant winners are:

Jeri Minford, Donna Burnop, Levin Sudderth, Robert Tufts of Cranford Middle School, for “Cranberry City.” This grant of $500 will benefit 73 middle school students who will reference existing skyscrapers in Asia to utilize scaling factors in math, energy efficiency data from science, and writing skills from language arts to build a city of energy efficient skyscrapers to form a cityscape.

Justin Carver and Elise Lipps, of Newland Elementary School, for “Get Your Fuze on: Reading in the 21st Century” to benefit 43 students. This grant of $600 will fund the purchase of “Fuze” MP3 players to allow students to learn even better by hearing what they’re reading during the Daily Five Reading Power groups and putting technology to work in an educational setting.

Elise Lipps and Justin Carver, of Newland Elementary School, for “Freaky Friday” to benefit 43 third-grade students. This grant of $500 will be used to help students perform hands-on learning and experiment based projects that align science curriculum and writing skills.

For the 2009-2010 school year, Blue Ridge Electric received ninety-one Bright Ideas grant applications from schools in its service territory in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, Avery and Wilkes County. Funds totaling $18,852 are being awarded to 20 classrooms and teachers to benefit thousands of area students, teachers, schools, and communities. Blue Ridge Electric is celebrating its 16th year of offering Bright Ideas grants as part of our support and commitment to education. To date, Blue Ridge Electric has awarded over $286,000 and provided direct funding assistance that has impacted over 80,000 students. Blue Ridge Electric is part of several North Carolina electric cooperatives providing Bright Ideas grants. Together, these entities have provided over 7 million dollars for North Carolina teachers and students.

To learn more about the Bright Ideas grants program, visit Blue Ridge Electric’s web site at BlueRidgeEMC.com or contact your local Blue Ridge Electric office.