When Lake Washington students return to school this fall, they will be able to build robots, use a 3-D printer and learn how to prevent bullying because of nearly $220,000 provided to the school district by Lake Washington Schools Foundation.

A $10,000 grant will help students access learning opportunities through the Access Fund that enables low-income middle and high school students to get the most out of school by providing scholarships to pay for school-related supplies, fees and extracurricular activities. A major Access Fund expense is for online classes, which help students who are behind in their classes to graduate.

Another $10,000 grant will support the new Safe Schools Ambassador (SSA) Program, which will deal with bullying and harassment. The field-tested and evidence-based program will be implemented in Eastlake, Juanita, and Tesla STEM high schools and the International Community School. Student leaders will be trained to work with mentor adults in order to resolve conflicts and to support excluded students.

The foundation also is funding the district’s New Teacher Support Program for second year teachers with a grant of $18,000. The program provides teachers with a guiding mentor and extra training. The foundation stepped in to fill the funding gap after state funding for the second year of the program was discontinued.

All Lake Washington schools are eligible to apply for the foundation’s Reaching for Success grants that provide up to $3,000 per applicant and give classrooms and schools tools to enrich learning. This year, the foundation is granting over $83,000 to 30 different schools. Eastlake High School’s robotics club.

A $25,000 grant from the foundation continues to support the STEM-based Signature Programs, available this year in all seven of the district’s high schools. Signature Program interdisciplinary courses focus on topics such as global health, sustainability and engineering and provide career pathways through industry-based projects.

The LINKS mentoring and tutoring program received $72,500 where LINKS volunteers spend one hour per week in classrooms as mentors, tutors and classroom helpers.

For more information about specific grants and other programs funded by the Foundation, visit www.lwsf.org/programs.