Student Scholarship Program:

TRTF awards scholarships to Texas college students pursuing a bachelor's or master's degree in Education.  Since the program's inception, TRTF has awarded $7500 in scholarship funds.  To read about the 2009-10 winners, please see below.  Student scholarship applicants must be a relative of a member of the Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) and should include their official high school or college transcripts with their application.

Classroom Assistance Grant Program:

Classroom Assistance Grants are awarded to public school teachers who on a daily basis demonstrate commitment to public education and Texas children through the creation of programs, events, or other learning platforms.  Since 2008, TRTF has given away $3000 in classroom assistance grants.  Read about the 2009 grant recipients and their innovative projects below. 

Call for Applications:

Applications are now available for the Texas Retired Teachers Foundation 2010-2011 Student Scholarships and Classroom Assistance Grants. Please read the guidelines before sending in your application. All completed applications must be received by the TRTF office no later than 5:00 pm on Thursday, March 18, 2010. Incomplete applications and those received after the deadline will not be considered.

You may download the applications here:

If you are unable to download the application, you may request one by sending an email to info@trtf.org with one of the following subject lines: Scholarship or Grant.

TRTF 2009-10 Student Scholarship and Grant Winners Announced

The Texas Retired Teachers Foundation (TRTF) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2009-10 Student Scholarships and Classroom Assistance Grants. 

This year, TRTF received over 70 student scholarship applications and 80 classroom assistance grant applications.  Recipients were announced at the 56th Annual Texas Retired Teachers Association Foundation Luncheon on Monday, March 30, 2009.

LaVonne Rogers, a member of the TRTF Board of Trustees, announced the winners. Ten scholarships and four classroom assistance grants were awarded.

 

The 2009-10 Student Scholarship recipients are as follows:

Jenny Latham attends Comanche High School in Comanche, Texas while earning dual credit at the local Ranger Junior College.  She is related to Janice Faye Davis, a member of the Comanche County RTA.  Ms. Latham will study elementary education. 

Kathleen McClure attends Baylor University in Waco, Texas and is majoring in Early Childhood education.  She also works part-time at West Avenue Elementary School with their after school program.  Her mother, Nancy Ryan, is an at-large member of TRTA, and is also a school teacher.

Kristine Janes lives in Pasadena, Texas and attends Deer Park High School.  She plans to begin college at Texas A&M in the fall.  Her desire is to be a science teacher.  Her mother, Judi Janes, is a member of the Ft. Worth RSEA.

Landon Sparks is a high school senior at Dekalb High School in DeKalb, Texas.  He is related to TRTA members Eddie and Cordell Elkins of Simms, Texas.  They are members of the Western Bowie County RTA.  Landon plans to major in science education when he attends the University of Texas in the fall.

Melissa Price is a junior at Texas State University in Round Rock, Texas studying Early Childhood through 4th grade education.  She currently works as an Educational Aide for Hutto ISD.  Melissa is a relative of Jonell McMahan of Lometa, Texas, who is a member of the Lampasas County RTA.

Mitzi Hughey has been a teacher and coach in the Texas public school system for several years.  She is pursuing a master’s of education at Angelo State University so that she may fulfill her goal of becoming a school administrator.  She is a relative of Bill and Patsy Pope, both members of the Comanche County RTA.

Phillip Gonzales is a high school senior at Richland High School in North Richland Hills, Texas.  He will attend the University of North Texas in the fall, majoring in mathematics.  He plans to become a teacher as well as a coach, following in his father’s footsteps.   He is related to Ms. Marcia Polsgrove, a member of the Ft. Worth RSEA.






Shelby Richardson lives in Lufkin, Texas and attends Lufkin High School.  She serves as a Drug Free AllStar for her high school, and is also a circle track racecar driver.  She plans to attend Texas A&M University and become a high school teacher.  She is related to Jana Richardson, an at-large member of TRTA.

Katherine Stewart attends the University of Mary Hardin Baylor in Belton, Texas.  She is majoring in History, while earning her secondary education certification.  She has been working for an after school program for Temple ISD for the past three years as an enrichment teacher, program aide, and math tutor.  She is related to Lucille Adams, a member of the Lubbock-South Plains RTA.

Kelsey Duncan attends Lubbock Christian University in Lubbock, Texas.  She also volunteers at Ballanger Head Start and Dunbar Middle School.  She is related to Jolene Armstrong of Ft. Worth, Texas, a member of the Birdville ARSP.

The 2009-10 Classroom Assistance Grant recipients are as follows:

Sara McCurry is a 4th grade teacher at Burnet Elementary School in Galveston, Texas.  Ms. McCurry’s school was flooded during Hurricane Ike, resulting in the school losing all of its listening stations.  Her grant will go toward purchasing books and CDs for listening stations, which are used to improve students’ reading comprehension and fluency. 

Winner Sara McCurry

Winner Sara McCurry and Class

Kristi Curtis is a 1st grade teacher at Wheatley Elementary School in Lubbock, Texas.  Ms. Curtis is part of a team of teachers including Lesli Boger, Debbie Baudouin, and Sylvia Reina. The team will be using their grant money to purchase copies of the magazines Scholastic News and National Geographic Young Explorer for every first grade student.  These 55 students will expand their learning in areas such as social studies, science, and writing.

Denise Clay is an ESL teacher at Brabham Middle School in Willis, Texas.  To help her students master the English language, she will be creating a high interest, multi-reading level library in her classroom.  The grant provided by TRTF will help her purchase the books she needs to boost her students’ independent reading levels.

Winner Denise Clay

Winner Denise Clay with Supervisor

Genevieve Moore works for Norma Krueger Elementary School in Marion, Texas, teaching pre-kindergarteners through second graders.  The grant being awarded to Ms. Moore will purchase a mobile science cart, which will contain items such as goggles, hand lenses, rulers, prisms, petri dishes, and thermometers.  The materials will enable students to experience science through hands-on activities and ultimately, improve their science TAKS scores.



TRTF will make special presentations to the aforementioned individuals in the coming months and will update the website after the awards are presented.

Congratulations to all award recipients and thank you to everyone who participated by submitting an application.  Your dedication and commitment to education is inspiring and greatly valued!

 

The Capitol Fence