Educational Foundation awards $15,672.74 in Innovation Grants for K-8 schools for 2025-2026 school year

Lexington, SC 04/10/2025 - The Lexington One Educational Foundation Board of Directors recently awarded a total of $15,672.74 in Innovation Grants for K-8 Schools to four schools in Lexington County School District One.

These Innovation Grants, valued at up to $5,000 each, advance existing or future cutting-edge educational efforts at the elementary or middle school level. Each school had to commit to a 10% match in order to apply and the grant projects had to impact a good portion of the school’s student population in order for a project to be considered for funding. This Educational Foundation investment will positively affect 1,824 students in Lexington District One during the 2025-26 school year.

Congratulations to the following Lexington District One schools for their 2025-2026 Innovation Grant award:

·         Gilbert Elementary School - $4,734.00 Innovation Grant Award – The “VR: A New Dimension of Learning” grant project fund will purchase 8 Class VR goggles and lesson content subscription for third through fifth graders. Students will explore science and social studies concepts in interactive, teacher-curated environments, aligning with SC state standards. Teachers will craft learning experiences that will cater to diverse learning styles, promoting equity in the classroom.

Click on this ad to learn more about our products and services

·         Oak Grove Elementary School - $3,630.00 Innovation Grant Award – The “Ozobots: Tiny Bots, Limitless Potential” grant project fund will be used to purchase a classroom set of Ozobots, enabling students to explore coding through hands-on, personalized activities that meet diverse learning needs. Innovative robots will empower students to experiment, problem solve, and refine ideas, fostering resilience and adaptability in a rapidly changing world.

·         Pleasant Hill Elementary School - $4,949.75 Innovation Grant Award - The “Develop Number Sense with Digi-Blocks” grant project fund will be used to purchase Digi-Blocks for all first through third grade classes. Digi-Blocks are an innovative and engaging educational tool designed to help students develop a deep conceptual understanding of our place value system.

·         Saxe Gotha Elementary- $2,358.99 Innovation Grant Award – The “Eagle Ts: Critical Reasoning to Grow Young Minds” grant project fund will purchase critical reasoning games for students in first through fifth grade classes. Games are aimed at enhancing verbal, quantitative, and non-verbal reasoning skills.

Foundation Executive Director Julie Anderson Washburn stated, “The Lexington One Educational Foundation Board of Directors encourages innovation in the classroom by offering these grants each year. This is the eleventh year the Foundation has awarded these Innovation Grants, which equate to 45 grant awards and a total investment of $255,571.23 in Lexington District One. The results have created some amazing learning experiences at seventeen of our schools, which have benefited 30,727 students to date.”

Educational Foundation board members are pleased to support such leading-edge educational opportunities for Lexington District One students. Thanks to generous individuals and businesses that invest in students through charitable gifts to the Educational Foundation, the foundation is able to offer such amazing educational grants in Lexington District One.

PHOTO CAPTION:  Pleasant Hill Elementary School Principal Margart Mitchum and Brittani Smith.

PHOTO CAPTION: Saxe Gotha Elementary School winners Hillarie Collins and Tracey Wooten