By Ceanne Guerra, Cox Media Contact

As part of its Innovation in Education program, the Cox Kids Foundation has awarded more than $58,000 in grants to 14 middle schools throughout San Diego County to fund innovative classroom projects. The 2009 Innovation in Education grants are presented by Bridgepoint Education, a leading provider of post-secondary education, and supporter of the advancement of teachers and students. The grants will be used by local teachers to create a new classroom project, build on an existing one, purchase equipment and materials, or promote student learning and participation.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Cox Kids Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Cox Communications. More than 1,000 employees donate funds from their paychecks, which are matched 100 percent by Cox Communications to support San Diego area educational initiatives and children and families in need. The Innovation in Education program awards grants to local middle schools to help fund educational programs that promote innovation and imagination in local classrooms. 

Chosen from nearly 70 applicants from throughout San Diego County, the 2009 Innovation in Education North County grant recipients are:

Bear Valley Middle School, Escondido, $4,534.38 - to implement a “Literary Puppet Production” project that uses Muppet-type hand puppets and video production equipment to help middle-school students connect with literature, and master content standards such as plot, setting, character, dialogue and theme. Students will produce a play, memorize, rehearse and perform scenes, and videotape/edit their play.

Guajome Park Academy, Vista, $1110.56 - for the “Gourd Sculpture and Ceramic Sculpture” project, designed to challenge students to solve three-dimensional design problems. Eighth-grade students will participate in preliminary work, concept development and actualization of two finished sculptures that are uniquely relevant to their lives. The grant will be used to purchase gourds, wood burning tools, power gourd saws, ink dyes, sculpture clay and pottery tool kits.

Guajome Park Academy, Vista, $900 - for “Going Graphic at Guajome,” a project that uses graphic novels to motivate students to read. Research shows that graphic novels and comic books engage middle school students and often serve as a gateway to more conventional novels. The objective of this project is to stock this public charter school’s limited library with books that will inspire and stimulate struggling and reluctant readers as well as English Language Learners.

San Elijo Middle School, San Marcos, $5,000 - for the “Eagles Soar from the Past” project, which will provide students with the opportunity to use film production techniques to learn and review history concepts. Students will be responsible for filming group skits including interviews of famous historical characters, panel discussions, and debates or re-creations of important historical events. The grant money will be used to purchase a digital camera, computers, tri-pods, software and cables.

Woodland Park Middle School, San Marcos $4,953.37 - for the project titled, “Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English Learning in the Digital Age” that will use InterWrite Pads and Classroom Performance System to increase students interest and participation. The InterWrite Pads and its supporting software provide visual imagery and stimuli using backgrounds, grids, graphic organizers, a screen capturing tool and hand-held responders. This immediate response technology had been on loan to teachers at Woodland Park, and they noticed an increase with students being on task, being actively engaged in lessons and with their Cornell note taking skills. The entire sixth-grade class will utilize this technology.

Marking its 10th anniversary of community giving, the Cox Kids Foundation will donate more than $500,000 to the San Diego Community in 2009. Since its inception in 1999, nearly $3 million has been raised through the foundation for community programs for children and families in need in the areas of health, education and social services.

About Cox Communications San Diego:

Award-winning Cox Communications is a full-service telecommunications provider of voice, video and data services. Operating in San Diego County since 1961, Cox offers the latest in digital and high definition cable television, high speed Internet, local and long distance telephone service, digital video recorder service and On Demand programming.  Commercial voice and data services are offered via Cox Business; advertising and promotional opportunities are available through Cox Media; and Cox Communications San Diego owns and operates award-winning Channel 4 San Diego, television home of the San Diego Padres and local programming including: Postgame; Sam the Cooking Guy; San Diego Insider Magazine; Shades of San Diego; Brainwave; and One on One with Jane Mitchell. For more information, visit www.cox.com and www.4sd.com.