Flint Hill Elementary Receives $3,700 Grant from Dart Foundation for School STEM Lab

(L-R): Megan McLees, Dart Foundation; Dr. Lynne DiNardo, Flint Hill Elementary School principal; Flint Hill STEM teacher, Rhonda Hughes; and Mr. Farren Elliott, Dart Foundation.

For the second consecutive year, Flint Hill Elementary School has received a grant from the Dart Foundation to enhance the school’s STEM Lab. Representatives from the Dart Foundation recently visited the school to present principal Dr. Lynne DiNardo and STEM teacher, Rhonda Hughes, with a check for $3,740.

“We are so thankful to the Dart Foundation for this grant for our STEM class,” said DiNardo. “With their financial support, our students in grades three, four, and five, will have the opportunity to explore science and math at a much deeper level. While in the STEM lab, they will engage in hands-on, inquiry-based learning. STEM lab activities will be focused on the standards for each grade level but will be more rigorous and academically challenging, allowing the students to explore beyond the regular classroom curriculum.”

DiNardo added that the funds provided through the Dart Foundation grant will be used to purchase supplies for the students’ activities. During the course of the school year, students will learn how to make solar ovens, irrigation systems, anemometers and catapults. They will also learn research and documentation skills as a result of these activities.

“The students and teachers at Flint Hill would like to thank the Dart Foundation for their support and generous gift,” said Hughes. “Their gift of $3,740 will help buy the supplies needed for our STEM lab so that our students will experience projects that involve solving authentic problems, working with others and building real solutions. We look forward to sharing the STEM lab’s success with the Dart Foundation.”

According to Emily Matthews, Dart Foundation manager, Flint Hill Elementary School’s STEM activities are a perfect fit with the Foundation.

“Our Foundation’s primary mission focus area is in education, with a particular focus on STEM, the skilled trades and workforce development,” said Matthews. “Our trustees believe that education is one of the most important areas of interest because it improves the quality of life for the community as a whole. We seek to fund a diverse group of school districts, school buildings and programs within our geographic reach so we encourage teachers in the Newton County School System to submit grant applications for consideration.”