From the Friends of Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, Feb. 18: Friends of Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, a nonprofit association dedicated to supporting and enriching programs at the city’s public high school, is pleased to announce its 2015 Faculty Innovation Grants.

Over the past eight years, 150 teachers and staff members have received FoCRLS Faculty Innovation Grants up to $1,000 each for enhancements, reaching every department at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School.

These teachers and staff members, along with many others, submitted extraordinary proposals through a highly competitive blind review process:

To: Nicole Hart, instructional technology specialist, and Ginny Berkowitz, Media Arts manager
For: The CRLS Legacy Project: An Interactive Portrait of Cambridge’s 366-Year-old Public High School to create an online experience showing the past, present and future of CRLS.

To: Conrad Hauck, engineering instructor, Rindge School of Technical Arts
For: Funding for 2015 FIRST Robotics Team 97 to exceed last year’s success and meet the needs of increasing membership.

Kimberly Parker, English teacher
For: The Achievement Gap Literacy Initiative to create a classroom library.

To: Jennifer Sarmiento, English teacher/adviser, literary arts magazine
For: CRLS Literary Arts Magazine to produce an affordable magazine showcasing students’ creativity.

To: Elisabeth Macias, world history teacher
For: Funding for CRLS Model Congress in which students think globally, respond to moral and ethical dilemmas, and effectively present arguments.

To: Kate Greene, special education teacher, High School Extension Program
For: Community Building and leadership skills for students.

To: Douglas Carey, carpentry teacher
For: Rolling planters for physically disabled nursing home residents in which carpentry students plan, budget, build, and donate planters to residents for growing flowers and vegetables.

To: Janet O’Reilly, STEP Team adviser
For: CRLS Steppers are Stepping Out! for Step Team attire, celebrating community, dedication and school spirit.

To: Marlin Kann, history teacher
For: Beacon Hill’s African American History Experience for students to deepen their understanding of history and archeology.

To: Jack Haverty, senior class adviser
For: Prom funding needs to bring inclusiveness to this celebration of years spent together.

To: Jesse Kaplan, Office of Student Support
For: Food for Thought: Providing healthful snacks to improve student achievement to nourish students without access nutrition.

In addition to the grants, FoCRLS offers scholarships and awards, student travel fellowships, the “It Takes a Village” College Success Program, the Unsung Heroes Program and faculty distinction awards. To learn more, become involved, donate or start a scholarship, visit focrls.org, email [email protected], or call (857) 235-9290.