Orono Foundation For Education

Annual fund grant the foundation provides a general operating grant to the orono school district each year to support a wide variety of k-12 educational expenses. The orono school district then allocates these dollars to key strategic priorities and pressing budgetary needs. This year, the foundation granted the schools $211,000 through its annual fund. In recent years, annual grants have been utilized by the schools to sustain exemplary programs that expand on and enhance student academics and experiences. Examples of these programs are k-8 world languages, k-5 literacy and reading intervention, character counts, and advanced placement classes.

Drones and robotics grantthe foundation raised money to support a new engineering class offered at orono high school, as well as the growing robotics program in the middle school. These funds provided drone and vex robotics kits for students to develop mechanical, programming and project management skills along with other technical and transferable skills sought in continuing education and the workforce. In addition, foundation funds supported the purchase of a solar suitcase which middle school students will build and send to africa to provide energy to a people in a refugee camp. This year, the foundation granted $40,000 to support the drones and robotics programs.