GOLDEN BELL EDUCATION FOUNDATION The Boca Chamber’s Education Foundation, known as Golden Bell, is a 501c3 non-profit corporation that was created for the sole purpose of supporting the Boca Raton Public School System. This past year with COVID-19, schools have had to greatly adjust to continue educating students in the best way possible. During our virtual school visits, we are learning that schools are navigating these challenging times in very innovative ways.
Here are four schools that are shining examples of how they are keeping education moving forward with grants given to them by Golden Bell: Coral Sunset Elementary
Principal: Dianne Rivelli-Schreiber Teacher: Teresa Girolmetti, Grantee As a Title One school, Coral Sunset is proud to have a high percentage of students return to the classroom. A highlight for them has been the number of behavior challenges that have drastically dropped because the students are happy to be back on campus. With their grant for Scholastic Storyworks, they use the magazine subscription to keep students encouraged and engaged through all the social and economic challenges.
Don Estridge High Tech Middle School
Principal: Rachel Capitano Teacher: Annette Levine, Grantee With their grant from Golden Bell, Don Estridge purchased a classroom set of “The Book Thief” to teach their Cambridge and gifted students about the Holocaust which is part of the mandatory cultural education in Florida. Whether in class or virtually, students were able to have a copy of the book to read and learn this valuable piece of history. As students create artwork and writings to accompany what is learned, students are also taught a life lesson that bad times will not last forever.
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Sandpiper Shores Elementary
Principal: Stephanie Colletto Teacher: Traci Rice, Grantee Sandpiper Shores is an ASD cluster site that has focused programming to help students on the autism spectrum. With one of their grants, they have been using MindPlay Virtual Reading program that has helped students stay on course with their literacy skills even during quarantine. Students who use the program never missed a beat in their much-needed literacy education because the program was always accessible anywhere online. Even during the summer months when the academic slide is a big concern, MindPlay is available to help keep students on track.
Olympic Heights Community High School
Principal: Kelly Mills Burke Teachers: Heidi Mansa and Sharon Neubauer, Grantees Olympic Heights has had to continue with their Little Lions preschool program that engages high school students from their Early Childhood Education Academy. Without missing a beat, but with proper Covid-19 restrictions, high school students in the academy are still able to work towards their college credits as they help with preschoolers. The grant provided curriculum for this newly
