What the Issaquah School district cannot provide, the Issaquah School Foundations fills in the gaps.

Grand Ridge Elementary School fifth-grade teacher Darrel Nichols was one of the grant recipients Friday, March 15, as the ISF’s “balloon brigade” visited unsuspecting Issaquah School District staff to surprise them with news of their winning grant proposals.

He was very surprised since he was one of the last stops made by ISF board members Debbie Rossman, and Carolyn Kennedy. The grant for his classroom will allow Nichols and his students to create videos to better understand math concepts, which will be shared with other students in the district. Nichols said the entire class is involved, and that it will allow his students to empower other kids in learning.

Each school year, Issaquah School District teachers and staff submit proposals to the foundation for projects that reflect a big idea — something innovative or creative — or a critical classroom item.

These types of projects can only move forward with foundation funding.

Grant requests in amounts of $1,000 — $10,000 are reviewed by a panel of judges and the top 10-12 applicants are invited to defend their proposals to the judges in March.

The outcome is a closely guarded secret until teachers are visited by the balloon brigade.

Grants were also given to Zana Moore at Cascade Ridge Elementary for enriching student learning by providing engaging Ebook access; LaShae Lee, Echo Glen, for adaptive math program supporting all student abilities; Jo Simpson and Janet Berry, Echo Glen, for vocational education veterinarian assistant program instructor; Chris Foley at Issaquah High School for AP environmental technology and support material; Alisa Jeremica at Liberty High School for a high school forensic science course; Betsy Sanford, Debbie Jones and Natalie Turner, Maple Hills Elementary, for creating a classroom rich in using math and numbers; Laura Berry, Newcastle Elementary, for enriching student learning by providing engaging Ebook access; Michael Schiehser at Tiger Mountain Community High School, for formation of the Tiger Mountain teen center and Joy Allison and Lane Helgeson at Tiger Mountain for sustaining the need to read; and Rena Pitasky, an ISD math specialist, Cathryn Gamiem, with Issaquah High School, Aime Karkainen at Skyline High School, and Mike Snow, from Liberty High School, for graphing calculators to close the achievement gap.