Karlie Mosher, Graphic Designer at Vivid Image serves on the Emerging Leaders Cabinet at Southwest Initiative Foundation, a client of Vivid Image. Karlie along with Don Martinez of Hutchinson recently awarded Park Elementary School a grant for $6,000. We’re proud of the work being done in our community by this organization! Please read their story:
$6,000 Grant Promotes ‘Reading Well by Grade Three’
Local members of Southwest Initiative Foundation’s Emerging Leaders Cabinet Present Grant
West Elementary School in Hutchinson recently received a $6,000 grant from Southwest Initiative Foundation’s (SWIF) Emerging Leaders Cabinet. The grant will fund “West’s Balanced Literacy – Reading Well by Grade Three,” a project to build and foster reading and writing skills for students. Don Martinez and Karlie Mosher, local residents and Emerging Leaders Cabinet members, recommended the funding for West Elementary after researching area needs.
The grant will help West Elementary purchase books, audio books and downloadable materials, word work games/materials for a Pre-K through 1st grade balanced literacy classroom. In a balanced literacy classroom, students follow a routine and take ownership of their independent learning rotation while the teacher is working with a small group of students. Creating this environment requires each classroom to have resources for students in a variety of instructional levels. This project ties into the Minnesota Department of Education’s “Reading Well by Grade Three” initiative, which requires school districts to develop a local literacy plan to ensure that all students are reading well by no later than the end of third grade.
“West Elementary is honored to have been awarded grant funding to enhance our current literacy-rich environments in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade classrooms. We want to ensure all of our students have access to a variety of resources to create both independent and directed activities, maintain students’ interest, and expose students to various genres and ideas. The ultimate goal is to connect literacy to all elements of our classrooms which will create opportunities for all of our students to be fluent and confident readers and writers.” Anne Broderius, West Elementary Principal, Hutchinson ISD 423
“Reading is something that is near and dear to me and I am so happy that we could help West Elementary with this grant through the generosity of SWIF and all donors.” Don Martinez
“I love to read and have since I was in elementary school. I think it’s important that children have good tools to learn to read and that they hopefully enjoy it, too. I thought this program and West Elementary was a great place for our grant money to go to.” Karlie Mosher
Mosher and Martinez are leaders in their community who also share a passion for the entire southwest Minnesota region. As part of the Emerging Leaders Cabinet, a committee of the Southwest Initiative Foundation’s Board of Directors, they help explore current realities and trends in the region and influence positive changes through activities including grantmaking. Martinez is the President and Director of CenBank. Karlie is a graphic designer for Vivid Image. Both are active volunteers in Hutchinson.
About Southwest Initiative Foundation
Southwest Initiative Foundation (SWIF) is a nonprofit community foundation connecting people, investing in ideas and building communities to create a southwest Minnesota where all people thrive. Since its founding in 1986, SWIF has distributed more than $75 million through its grantmaking and business finance programs. Learn more at swifoundation.org.
