Harrison Hills educators earn Best Practices Grants for innovative student projects

Three Harrison Hills City School District projects were among those receiving the latest round of Best Practices Grants from the Jefferson County Educational Service Center.

On Oct. 30, JCESC Director of Curriculum Ron Sismondo spoke at the Harrison Hills Board of Education meeting and presented three grants of $700 each. Sismondo said there were 61 total applications from the JCESC consortium, eight of which came from Harrison Hills.

“They were all good applications and good projects, and we selected three of them,” he said.

At Harrison Central Junior/Senior High School, teachers Jaclyn Cottrell and Ann Wright are helping students launch the “PAWSitivity Coffee Café” as a service learning project, initially involving more than 22 students. As the name suggests, students will create and operate a café, gaining life and work skills in areas such as menu planning, inventory management and marketing.

Wright said the project quickly took off from the concept stage. The café is now open and may provide work-based career readiness opportunities for students.

“We have a group of four boys who actually took this project on, created it, came up with the plans,” Wright said. “It also helps them earn their seals for readiness for graduation.”

Cottrell said students showed creativity by researching recipes and taking the lead in running the café. They plan to pass it on to underclassmen in future years. Grant funds will help purchase coffee machines, and community donations are helping supply materials to keep the café sustainable.

Cottrell said students also wanted the café to “give back” to teachers who go above and beyond. She previously received a Best Practices Grant two years ago for agricultural projects.

At Harrison Central Elementary, teacher LeAnn VanCamp is combining practical skills and history through her new art program, “For the Love of Fiber.” The project introduces fiber arts such as rug hooking and felting to more than 300 students.

VanCamp, who is part of a rug hooking guild, said the funds will be used to make six rug-hooking frames and 12 hooks. Students will begin with small projects such as coasters before moving to larger works.

She also plans to teach the historical roots of rug hooking, which dates to the early 1900s, when families created rugs from recycled fabrics. Students will design their own pieces and may learn hand quilting from community members.

“They don’t have home economics anymore, and I think it’s a lost skill,” VanCamp said. “I’m trying to give them some life skills.”

The project will also teach students how to provide positive critiques of each other’s work. VanCamp is a previous grant recipient; in 2019-20, her project involved students making quilts for local American Legion posts.

Another Harrison Central Elementary teacher, Alisha Steele, is launching “Growing Gardens and Minds,” partnering with the Gardyn Studio to use hydroponics to transform classrooms into “living laboratories.” The project, which will serve about 120 students, connects to science and English language arts standards by allowing students to grow fresh produce indoors while studying ecosystems, nutrition and sustainability.

Students will use Kelby AI to analyze data from sensors and cameras that monitor plant care. Steele said she hopes students will develop confidence by presenting their findings and exploring healthy habits through tasting their harvest.

“The project connects core standards to real-world experiences to make learning meaningful and engaging,” she said in a statement read at the meeting.

Sismondo said JCESC has funded similar successful projects in other districts and looks forward to seeing what Steele’s students accomplish.

“The kids really love it. They work hard at it, and it’s a good project,” he said, adding that it’s a pleasure to work with Harrison Hills’ staff and facilities, which often host JCESC trainings.