Hamilton County school teachers make presentations for funding

Attendees listen to presentations of innovative ideas for education during the Teacherpreneur Incubator event at the Granfaloon on Main Street on Sunday in Chattanooga. Five of the 21 projects pitched during the event received cash awards.
Attendees listen to presentations of innovative ideas for education during the Teacherpreneur Incubator event at the Granfaloon on Main Street on Sunday in Chattanooga. Five of the 21 projects pitched during the event received cash awards.

For the second year, Hamilton County school teachers pitched their best ideas for better learning and better schools at the Public Education Foundation's "Teacherpreneur Incubator" competition Sunday.

With less than a week before the new school year begins, 21 teachers spent the weekend fine-tuning and presenting their ideas to the PEF, which offers expertise and more than $100,000 to winning projects for implementation. Hundreds of public education supporters packed 400 E. Main St. where the event was held.

"One of the things that happened last year is that we elevated the teaching profession. We did it again tonight," said Keri Randolph, vice president of learning at the PEF.

photo Crystal Mayer, left, and Tiffany Welch of Spring Creek Elementary give one of 21 presentations of innovative ideas for education pitched by teachers during the Teacherpreneur Incubator event at the Granfaloon on Main Street on Sunday in Chattanooga.

Teachers from the first Teacherpreneur selected the 21 presenters from 65 proposals this year.

Judges plan to announce project winners this week.

They selected five presenters Sunday night to receive prize money for their ideas. The prize money is in addition to money that may be awarded to implement projects.

Winners announced Sunday include first-place winner Sarah Clardy of Normal Park who won $2,000. Candace Baggett of Lookout Valley Elementary and Crystal Mayer and Tiffany Welch of Spring Creek Elementary won second place with a $1,000 prize. Amy Myhan, a Hamilton County Department of Education tech coach, won $750 for third place.

People in the audience also picked a "Crowd Source" winner. It was a tie between Taryn Painter of Apison Elementary with MATHCom and Kessler Cuffman of Center for Creative Arts with Dynamo Studios.

Hamilton County Board of Education Chairman George Ricks was among seven judges. He commended several of the teachers for their proposals. Other judges included City Attorney Wade Hinton, Dr. Robert Sharpe of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Causeway Executive Director Abby Garrison.

Other proposals included Rivermont Elementary teachers Michele Dockery and Leah Cook who proposed using 4-D technology to teach students the alphabet. The technology makes learning easier for children with special needs who may need more than textbooks to learn, they said. And Lisa Millard of Lakeside Academy presented "Gifted on the Go," which provides interesting activities for gifted children to continue learning in areas like math and reading while they wait for other students to complete assignments.

Randolph encouraged teachers to stay motivated about their ideas even if their projects aren't chosen for funding.

"Last year, we had 28 proposals, 22 of them have moved," she said. "We only funded 15. It's not just about money. In fact, it's almost never about money. It's about you."

Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.

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