Hilton Schools awarded national, state and local grants

The Hilton Central School District has recently received more than $148,000 in local, state and national grants in the area of transportation, education and records retention.

$87,000 Clean Air School Bus Program Grant
"We will cut 50 percent of emission particulates with the diesel converters funded by this grant," Hilton Director of Transportation Fred Paye said. The $87,000 grant from the New York State Clean Air School Bus Program allows Hilton buses to retrofit school buses with an exhaust device which reduces particulates as well as cuts carbon monoxide and other air pollutants. Webster and Pittsford School Districts also received grants for emission controls for their bus fleets.

35,000 Legislative Grant for "The Home Connection"
Thanks to the efforts of N.Y.S. Assemblyman Charles Nesbitt, Hilton Schools will be able to purchase 20 new laptop computers and software to be used for "The Home Connection." Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Susan Allen said, "We are anticipating using laptops for Academic Intervention Services students at the High School." Nesbitt is the Minority Leader in the State Assembly and a member of the N.Y.S. Assembly Republican Conference.

$20,337 Records Retention Grant
The N.Y.S. Education Department awarded the Hilton School District a $20,337 grant to microfilm "permanent and vital" records such as student cumulative records, student information sheets, recent individual education programs, plans, maps, designs, architectural drawings, photographs, year-end payrolls and summary records from Human Resources. "We expect to microfilm about 226,200 images this year," District Clerk Patricia Unterborn said. The grant will fund a microfilm reader/printer and storage cabinet as well as fund part-time clerical help.

$5,000 National Geographic Society Grant
Northwood Elementary School teachers Alicia Vanborssum and Nora Davison were awarded a $5,000 National Geographic Society Education Foundation grant to support the "Touch the World" project. "This grant will enable us to assemble and archive three-dimensional objects from all over the world," Vanborssum said, "including mountain, desert, polar, rainforest, grassland for the third grade social studies curriculum." Teachers will be trained to use object-based learning with the cultural artifacts and natural specimens to support implementation of geography standards.

$1,000 Exxon/Mobil Education Grants
Both Northwood Elementary and Merton Williams Middle School received $500 Exxon/Mobil Education Alliance grants to support the purchase of educational materials for the FIRST Book Club and fund special assemblies respectively. The grants were made possible by Don and Holly Marron's Mobil.

"Photography in the Classroom" photographic materials donation
The Eastman Kodak Company has donated several hundred disposable cameras, a color printer, a digital camera, several 35mm and Advantix cameras, film and photo paper for a "Photography in the Classroom" project of teachers Andrea Moore and Margie Bodine at the Village Elementary School. "The project was termed 'SNAP'," Bodine said. "We participated in a regional SNAP exhibit at the George Eastman House where student work was displayed. This year we were able to obtain enough cameras for the entire sixth grade." Students use their photographs to create collages and write accompanying essays.