Envision Credit Union recently announced the winners of their 2019 School Grant Contest, awarding $2,000 each to three local schools. The opportunity was offered to any school, public or private, within one of Envision’s 19-county membership areas throughout North Florida and South Georgia. 

Schools were encouraged to submit a grant proposal for an educational project in the categories of financial literacy, technology or community service, detailing their dream project and the impact it could have on students’ day to day lives. After a two-week public voting period with over 7,000 community votes, the top three schools chosen were Thomas County’s Hand-in-Hand Primary School and Tallahassee, Florida’s Astoria Park Elementary and Chaires Elementary. Envision also will be donating $500 to each of the other six finalists to assist in the future implementation of their school projects. 

“Envision recognizes the importance of innovative teaching and knows that great educators are always looking for new ways to enhance student’s educational experience,” said Kelli Water, vice president of Community Development at Envision Credit Union. “Each year we are proud to offer these grants to help financially support local schools in their efforts to further engage students and improve their learning opportunities.” 

Hand in Hand Primary will be using its grant money to fund resources that will assist faculty in teaching students how to self-regulate their emotions. They hope to help create meaningful relationships and connections between children and their families by providing students with the opportunity to learn how to properly express themselves. 

Funds from the grant will be used to purchase supplies for a Conscious Discipline program the school has been implementing. Hand-in-Hand Counselor Whitney Robertson applied for the grant with hopes of enhancing a child’s emotional development by strengthening the skills of both students and staff, all of which have a profound effect on school climate and learning.

The benefits of Robertson’s project, entitled “‘Bee’coming Our Best Through Social Emotional Learning,” will be carried into a child’s future years of school by helping students become successful students and citizens.

“As the Hand-In-Hand School Counselor, I am working to grow our staff in knowledge, understanding, and scrupulous practice of the Conscious Discipline powers of self-control and skills of self-discipline in order to become more emotionally regulated adults,” Robertson said. “In turn, these adults can teach the necessary skills of self-regulation to children in order to enhance social, emotional, and academic learning.”

The $2,000 will purchase supplies such as self-regulation toolkits which students can use to help label and manage their emotions, language literacy packs to help develop social and emotional skills and “greeting aprons” to help sent the tone for a positive day of learning.

“If a child can do advanced math, speak three languages or make top grades, but they can’t handle their emotions, then none of the other stuff really matters,” Robertson said. “That’s why this is so important to us.”

Robertson plans to also develop six “calm-down” centers in each of Hand-In-Hand’s hallways to provide a safe place for students to work through their emotions.

“It is hard for a student to learn to read and write if they can’t regulate how they feel,” Robertson added. “This has a vertical progression which, if continued, will one day help these individuals enter the workforce with the ability to learn financial literacy, use technology, and serve their community. Ultimately, children and teachers will have an opportunity to learn new skills that will help alleviate conflicts and contribute to improved mental health which will prove beneficial in and to our community.”

Envision has been instrumental in improving education through grants to local schools. The credit union has donated more than $60,000 in classroom grants since the program’s inception, and teachers from Thomas County Schools have been fortunate to benefit from Envision’s commitment to education.

Astoria Park Elementary will be using the grant from Envision to establish a robotics club, offering students hands on opportunities to investigate the world of robotics coding while practicing teamwork and gaining problem-solving skills. Chaires Elementary hopes to improve student’s financial literacy knowledge through the use of graphic novels. With the funds from Envision’s grant, Chaires will now have access to over 3,000 graphic novels for students to use at school and at home. The school also plans on creating their own published novel that will be donated to the neighboring Eastside Branch Library, so all local schools can have the opportunity to learn about financial literacy. The final winner, 

Founded by a group of teachers in 1954 with a mission to support local educators, Envision has preserved those ideals through ongoing efforts that impact teachers, schools and students throughout its North Florida and South Georgia region. 

For more information about Envision Credit Union and its philanthropic initiatives, visit www.EnvisionCU.com, or call (850) 942-9000.