Window World of Joliet Awards STEM Grants to Teachers

At Window World of Joliet, we believe in the power of community. Locally-owned and operated, Window World of Joliet delivers energy-efficient windows, siding, and doors.

We understand how important education is for students and are promoting the advancement of STEM education in the classroom. The main goal is to further develop energy-saving technologies within the community. Over the past few years, Window World of Joliet has awarded 20 STEM grants to teachers throughout the counties we serve including Cook, Grundy, Kankakee, Lake, LaSalle, and Will counties.

For the 2019-2020 school year, Window World of Joliet awarded ten (10) $1,000 STEM grants to various STEM educators in our community. Applicants were asked to fill out a short application on windowworldjoliet.com.

Some of the questions we asked on the application included how their plan and curriculum advanced the development of energy-efficiency science and technology? How many days/weeks they plan to spend on STEM topics and how their students relate to the curriculum. We also asked how many students would be involved in the project and how the grant would contribute to their overall plan.

The following STEM educators were awarded:

Congratulations to Minooka Intermediate School’s 6th Grade STEM Teacher, Mrs. Kristi Szum for receiving one of the Window World of Joliet STEM grants! Minooka CCSD 201, we look forward to seeing your completed energy-efficient “tiny house”.

Congratulations to 8th grade STEM teacher, Ms. Regan Hack of Limestone Middle School in Kankakee. We are happy to support the advancement of STEM education and we wish you well with building your energy-efficient model homes.

Congratulations to Robotics & Engineering Teacher, Mr. Jake Ziesmer of Joliet Catholic Academy, the grant will be used to grow the robotics program and build an energy-efficient ErgoBot.

Congratulations to Third-Grade Science Teacher, Ms. Breann Cumming & Principal Hartman from Lincoln Elementary School for being awarded the Window World of Joliet STEM Grant. The grant will be used for Artie3000, The Coding Robot and Snap Circuits® for the students’ makerspace.

Congratulations to Library & Media Specialist, Ms. Agatha Ferris of Indian Trail Middle School. Funds will be used for the advancement of the BAM Makerspace Club and Family STEAM night on April 22, 2020.

Congratulations to Ms. Joy M. Otry, Chemistry & AP Chemistry Instructor and Science Olympiad Coach for Joliet West High School’s STEM Academy. The grant will be used for specific items needed for her STEM teams to use at the competitions throughout the school year. The grant will also be used to host an invitational for Science Olympiad, where different Chicagoland schools compete in various STEM competitions at Joliet West High School.

Congratulations to Ms. Kimberly A. O’Malley, STEM Teacher at Morris Community High School. She is planning on purchasing supplies for the STEM Lab. Supplies would include materials to enhance their STEM topics such as programming. The grant will also be used to enhance the greenhouse program, for 3D printing supplies and equipment for their energy-efficiency unit. The project will be model windmills, using copper tape to understand circuits and foam boards. The grant will also be used to purchase materials to build a scale model home including items for solar panels, wiring and switches.

Lastly, congratulations to Ms. Kara Anderson (not photographed), STEM Teacher at Shepherd Middle School in Ottawa. She will be using the money to purchase a TI Innovator Breadboard Pack, TI Innovator Hub and TI-Nspire CX Graphing Calculator for her students to create a model heart and program a code that simulates the beating of the heart, flow of the blood through the heart and to simulate a defibrillator. She also plans on using the money to purchase an additional Lego Mindstorm EV3 for her students to build and code.

Window World of Joliet will be opening STEM grant submissions for the 2020-2021 school year on April 20, 2020. The $1,000 grants are for STEM educators that teach within the communities we serve including Cook, Grundy, Kankakee, Lake, LaSalle, and Will counties. You will be able to apply online at windowworldjoliet.com or call (815) 729-3100 with questions.

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