LIEF funded 25 Teacher Grants during the 2024–2025 school year, enriching student learning through hands-on, creative, and experiential opportunities.

These grants supported:

• Curriculum & Science Resources – Egg incubators, frog dissection kits, a vacuum pump, and other classroom tools that bring science to life.

• Outdoor & Environmental Learning – Rain suits for outdoor education, native plants, and fencing tools for a schoolyard restoration project.

• Student Travel & Competitions – Funding for student trips and participation in a musical ensemble contest and the state archery tournament.

• Week-Long Intensives – Supplies and transportation for immersive electives such as Survival Skills, Hiking & Biking, Nature Art, Museum Explorers, and Asian & Tex-Mex Cooking.

At the end of the 2024–2025 school year, LIEF allocated $15,000 to help close the district’s deficit and is now leveraging additional community support to further reduce the budget shortfall in the upcoming academic year.

The Lopez Island Education Foundation has funded over 30 grant applications. These grants range from math curriculum books to electromagnetism kits; from field trips to the Tulalip Hibulb Cultural Center to the State House in Olympia to a marine biology snorkeling day trip; from supplies for the Spanish culinary class to an ADA swing for the playground to resources for staff and coaches to improve elementary reading and writing skills.

Grants awarded to LISD $8537 to support the following:

• Field trips: Tulalip cultural center, Padilla Bay, Moran State Park, Guemes Island, Seattle Aquarium and Iceberg Point.

• Supplies/equipment: Kindergarten books & curriculum, student desks, wobble stools, personal financial books, calculators, culinary class equipment

• Other: Outdoor leadership ropes course, Spider expedition, Yoga for teachers

We strive to keep our fundraising & operational expenses to a minimum (only 2-4% depending on the years)

Donations were received from individuals and businesses (thank you San Juan Septic, Sunset Builders, Bayside Sales).

Note: Field trips are very expensive–bus and driver costs are around $700 for a day trip plus $154 for a bus ferry ticket. Without LIEF support, many school trips are not possible. 

Grants awarded to LISD: $14,445 for :

• Classroom supplies ($11,000) to help ease school budget constraints

• Software for online instruction during covid

• Class support: frog dissection, garden class equipment (lawn mower and induction cookers & pots), solar dehydrator

• Training: Leadership San Juan Islands

NOTE: Lower level of activities due to covid.

$17,203 grants awarded, 15 funded requests, 230 student beneficiaries. Grants were awarded for

• Helping to purchase a van

• Purchasing Music Keyboards & a Maker Cart

• Funding Math Olympiad, Culinary & Art Supplies, Field Trips, Robotic Club, Intensives & Activity Days

• $8,000 contribution toward the purchase of a much needed 12-seater school van

• A 5th grade trip to the Museum of Flight in Seattle

• Supplies and a field trip to Japantown as part of a five-day Japanese cooking intensive

• A rowing machine for the school fitness room

• Transportation and hotel costs for participants at a Math Olympiad competition in Bellingham

• Rental of snorkels and wet suits for a marine biology class

• Robot “brains”, magnets, and Legos for STEM education

• 2-day Kingian non-violence training for high-school students of Journalism and US History classes

• Teacher grants to supplement classroom instruction, such as bird field journals;

• Expenses for Math Olympiad tournaments and healthy, nourishing snacks;

• Purchase of materials to build a raku kiln in the new Art Room;

• Annual elective hands-on activities based on the passions of teachers, students and parents, including week-long intensives, swimming lessons in Anacortes, and sailing voyage outings;

• Purchase of a rowing machine for the fitness room, a wheelbarrow and garden gloves for the Garden class and school garden

• Fall 2016: supported for K-12 engineering program in collaboration with Take It Or Leave It to build a DIY 3D printer

• Funded STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) activities including VEX robotics, Math Olympiad, and scientific probes for data collection

• purchase of reading intervention materials and seeds for school garden

• Funded 2016 off-island school trips including a marine biology field trip aboard the research vessel Centennial.

• Funded 2016 Spring Intensives, including Jones Island intensive, culinary intensive, Yosemite trip intensive, music appreciation intensive, farm intensive, swimming intensive, biking intensive, and bowling and skating intensive.

• Funded 2015/2016 Teachers Grant requests, including Math Olympiad, Centennial marine biology (hands-on science activity for elementary students), English Language Learner (ELL), purchases of seeds for school garden, VEX Robotics, purchase of textbooks, capacity building for teacher, as well as procurement of education equipment (including iPads, Kindle Fire, and camera).

• Nationally recognized Farm to School Program funded.

• Community Fitness and Nature Trail funded.

• Purchased sound recording equipment and digital video recorder for digital video arts class, clicker technology for use in elementary classroom, materials for literacy project, and LCD projector.

• Provided funding for rocketry project, special education, elementary math technology, and elementary music

• Funded 5th grade trip to Islandwood

• Funded end-of-year middle school trips including trips to the Olympic Coast and North Cascades Institute.

• Funded students to compete in the State Math Olympiad and Lego Robotics

• Funded new equipment and shed for the school’s garden.

• Funded teacher grant requests

• Charlie Brown student production in September 2014 sponsored by Lopez Thrift Shop, LIFRC, Lopez Library, Swal’lech Construction and others in our community.

• And more, ranging from support for middle school athletics to technology in the classrooms

  • Middle School Sports, Drama, and Music funded for the 2009-2012

  • Purchased wind instruments for the school’s Music program.

  • Purchased an electronic body fat measuring device for the school’s Physical Education Department.

  • Purchased a new saltwater aquarium for the Science Lab.