ATLANTA – House Majority Leader Jon Burns (R-Newington), State Representative Bill Hitchens (R-Rincon), State Representative Butch Parrish (R-Swainsboro), State Representative Jan Tankersley (R- Brooklet) and State Senator Jack Hill (R-Reidsville) announced today that Gov. Nathan Deal named Springfield Elementary School in Effingham County and Sallie Zetterower Elementary School in Bulloch County winners of the Innovation Fund Tiny Grant Program. The Innovation Fund Tiny Grant is a competitive grant opportunity that provides public educational institutions with funding to develop small-scale projects that directly engage students.
“We are thrilled that two of our local schools are Tiny Grant winners and will receive funds to further enhance educational opportunities in Bulloch and Effingham counties,” said Leader Burns. “Tiny Grant projects will provide Springfield and Sallie Zetterower Elementary School students with the opportunity to directly engage in modern, advanced educational areas. These children are our future leaders, and our community will greatly benefit from the emphasis these dollars will place on education, especially on math, science and technology.”
Springfield Elementary was awarded $9,960.34 to create a hands-on STEAM lab, and Sallie Zetterower Elementary was awarded $3,007.94 to develop an outdoor science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) classroom.
Georgia’s Innovation Fund Tiny Grant Program awards traditional public schools, charter schools and school districts with funding to implement innovative projects to engage students and solve existing problems in an inventive way. These projects must fall into one of three priority areas, which include applied learning with a focus on science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) education; development and replication of blended learning school models; and birth to age eight language and literacy development. Tiny grants range from $1,000 to $10,000, and grantees will track their project’s impact on student engagement and achievement to submit a report to the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement upon the grant’s completion.
Georgia’s Innovation Fund serves as a financial partner to encourage public education entities to develop and enhance programs and initiatives that allow our state’s educators to improve student performance as well as to find solutions to Georgia’s greatest educational challenges.
For more information about Georgia’s Innovation Fund, please click here.
Representative Jon Burns represents the citizens of District 159, which includes portions of Bulloch, Effingham, and Screven counties. He was first elected into the House of Representatives in 2006 and currently serves as the Majority Leader in the Georgia House of Representatives. He also serves on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education and the Agriculture & Consumer Affairs, Economic Development & Tourism, Ethics, Games, Fish, & Parks, Rules, and Transportation committees.
Representative Bill Hitchens represents the citizens of District 161, which includes portions of Chatham and Effingham counties. He was first elected into the House of Representatives in 2012, and serves as the Chairman of the Defense & Veterans Affairs Committee. He is also a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Economic Development & Tourism, Public Safety & Homeland Security and Transportation committees.
Representative Butch Parrish represents the citizens of District 158, which includes portions of Bulloch, Candler, Emanuel, and Jenkins counties. He was elected into the House of Representatives in 1984, and currently serves as the Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Health. He also serves on the Banks & Banking, Economic Development & Tourism, and the Rules committees.
Representative Jan Tankersley represents the citizens of District 160, which includes portions of Bryan and Bulloch counties. She was elected into the House of Representatives in 2010, and currently serves as the Chairman of the Intragovernmental Coordination Committee. She also serves on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Economic Development and the Agriculture & Consumer Affairs and Natural Resources & Environment committees.
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