MIAMI BEACH EDUCATION GRANTS HELP TEACHERS ENRICH ACTIVITIES March 5, 2002 South Pointe Elementary School students will enjoy their own musical production of "Annie." Monique Medyk's class at North Beach Elementary will learn to read music and play rhythms on individual keyboards. Students at Fienberg-Fisher Elementary will learn to open their minds to different styles of art through a series of prints being circulated among their classrooms. These are some of the education-enhancing activities being funded by the first set of grants from the Miami Beach Education Foundation. The county's only organization of its kind, the foundation was established to support the eight schools in the Miami Beach High School feeder pattern. Click image to enlarge. "We want to encourage and coordinate contributions by businesses, individuals and organizations in support of these schools," said Foundation president Leslie Coller, one of the volunteers serving on the Foundation's board of directors. The board evaluates the grant applications and votes for the most needed or useful activity in each school. Teachers in Miami Beach High School feeder pattern schools are encouraged to apply for the grants, which amounted to $500 each this year. Next year, according to Coller, the Foundation is shooting for $1,000 grants, with the amounts increasing by $500 or more each year. The long-range goal of the Foundation is to establish an endowment that provides recurring funds to support public education in the feeder pattern. For more information, contact Coller at 305-532-6844. ### 02-AC0211/BD Back to News Releases