Featured Grants

Ryan's Story, Sandra Caruso, Frelinghuysen Middle School

At MEF sponsored assemblies on March 10, all students at Frelinghuysen Middle School heard the compelling and tragic story of the effects that bullying can have on entire families. John Halligan, an activist on suicide prevention and anti-bullying, was at the middle school to describe how his son, Ryan, killed himself in 2003 at the age of thirteen after many years of being bullied at school.

Mr. Halligan, his voice often breaking with emotion, told the students about the circumstances leading up to Ryan's suicide. Recounting the story of Ryan's life, Mr. Halligan described how Ryan's problems with bullying began when Ryan was in fifth grade and had moved to a new school. The bullying Ryan experienced started at school and escalated online. Despite his parent's awareness of the bullying, Ryan begged them not to speak to the school about the incidences because he was convinced it would only make the situation worse. Tragically, he lost hope and committed suicide on October 7, 2003.

The Frelinghuysen students were very moved by the assemblies. Among the comments made after hearing Ryan's Story were "the assembly changed the way I think" and I will "stop a bully if I am a bystander." Students also felt tremendous compassion for Mr. Halligan. One student was quoted saying, "he was brave to tell his story and it will stay with me forever." Mr. Halligan has become a nationally recognized speaker on bullying and suicide prevention and has been on The Oprah Show, Frontline, and Primetime with Diane Sawyer.

After the assemblies, the Frelinghuysen guidance counselors were available for individual sessions with students. Ryan's Story was the topic of the school's following advisory sessions and discussions centered on what could be done to stop bullying both in school and online. In addition, the Frelinghuysen HSA sponsored an assembly for parents during the evening of March 10 with John Halligan. This parent information session gave parents information on ways to protect children from cyberbullying and tools to help recognize depression in young adults. The parent assembly was attended by over four hundred parents in the district.

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King Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs,
Patti McNamara, Frelinghuysen Middle School
Stepping back 3,000 years into history, Frelinghuysen seventh graders got first hand experience with hieroglyphics, sarcophagi, ivory furniture, gold jewelry, death masks, and mummies. A visit in October to the exhibit Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs held at the Discovery Times Square Exposition in New York City was made possible in part by a grant from the Morris Educational Foundation.

Kyle Vaz, one of the more than 300 middle school students who toured the exhibit thought King Tut's chariot was cool. "The jars where they put the organs in were also interesting. They looked pretty advanced for the time."

As part of the new social studies curriculum, students learned about Howard Carter's 1922 discovery of King Tut's tomb in Egypt and explored the ancient artifacts of the figures who guided ancient Egypt. Students learned about the 200-year period of the 18th Egyptian Dynasty, also known as its Golden Age, the height of Egyptian power and artistry.

The treasures unearthed in King Tut's tomb provide an amazing glimpse into ancient Egypt and the accomplishments of the ancient civilization. During their study, students learned the significance of the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, and the New Kingdom.

"After learning about different ancient civilizations, Egyptians seem to be very sophisticated compared to the other civilizations. I liked the piece of the exhibit that showed all of the jewelry that the Egyptians made back then," said seventh grader Amy Tobler.

Since their trip into New York City, students have shared their excitement about the experience with their parents, many of whom are now planning their own visits to witness the spectacle and wonders of ancient Egypt.

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Great Garden, Gabrielle Meyer, Thomas Jefferson School
Where do vegetables come from? While many fourth graders might answer, "the grocery store," Thomas Jefferson science teacher, Gabrielle Meyer, wants her students to first think, "the earth!" and experience planting, tending, and harvesting their own vegetables. By March, TJ science classes will be busy sewing seeds in their classroom's 3-tier grow-right stand. In spring, garden building will begin in hopes of reaping a great edible crop in their new GREAT GARDEN by June!

A $1,000 grant from the Morris Educational Foundation was awarded to Gabrielle Meyer for the garden project. "I was so excited to receive this MEF grant," says teacher Gabrielle Meyer. "I want to give children a hands-on learning experience to support the science curriculum." The winter will be spent planning: when to plant the seeds, when to build and fill the raised beds, and how much time students will need to tend their GREAT GARDEN. The flowers and plants will be studied by the students during their "Plant Unit," so what is planted will be grown and dissected, or grown and eaten, to support this fourth grade science unit.

The grant covered the major expenses of the Great Garden project, but Ms. Meyer needed to be creative to make the project happen. A local Girl Scout Troop will donate one or two of the raised beds and then help to work the garden to receive a badge.

The raised bed borders will be made of recycled material, longer lasting than wood borders, and the recycled materials help the environment, important to TJ students and faculty. The bed borders will be constructed by students during classes and then moved outside by April.

The GREAT GARDEN harvest will tie in with TJ's Annual Earth Day Celebration in June. In the past, Ms. Meyer has asked for donations for plants to plant for Earth Day, but this year the students will be growing the plants in their GREAT GARDEN. Ms. Meyer's fifth grade RRR Club (Reduce, ReUse, Recycle) will participate in the Great Garden exhibit at Earth Day, by setting up stations to explain how the raised bed borders were made with recycled materials. As a final project, Ms. Meyer says, "I'm looking forward to serving a big salad to everyone in June!"

The garden's progress will be documented with photographs, which will be posted in this website's photo Gallery.