CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Christmas came early for teachers at Solomon M. Coles High School as Santa Claus, community sponsors and the Corpus Christi Education Foundation surprised educators with classroom grants on Friday.
The festive visit was part of a district-wide giveaway of more than $169,000 given to 85 classroom grants, bringing much-needed resources directly to teachers who work with some of the community's most vulnerable students.
Counselor Sara Nelson was among the recipients at the campus, where she works with 150 students who often arrive as their last chance for academic success.
"We get a lot of students who have not been successful in the past academically and this is their last chance for a high school diploma. By the time they reach us and their 16, 17, 18 years old they are defeated," Nelson said.
Nelson's department lacks designated funding, making the grant particularly valuable for running mental health workshops and providing essential tools for her students.
"I've probably spent thousands of dollars out of my own money making this an inviting room and making it somewhere where the students feel comfortable coming," Nelson said.
Husband-and-wife teachers Angelique and Gary Leary also received grants, which they plan to use for modernizing their science classrooms with safety equipment and 3D printers for STEM activities.
"Equipment to dissect and all the stuff that they need to make sure that they stay safe while they are doing all of that," Angelique Fernandez-Leary said.
The grants provide teachers with resources that extend beyond their personal budgets while ensuring students receive quality educational materials.
"These grants really do help, you know, save some of our own money, but plus we can also get better quality equipment, better quality supplies for our kids to actually use," Fernandez-Leary said.
All educators emphasize excitement to put the grant to use, hoping students feel seen and encouraged.
“Sometimes if you can get that little spark, that little push in the right direction for them it can lead them to figuring out what they want to do and figuring out what the want to go where they need to go to get that done whether that be college or trade school…,” emphasized Gary Leary.
Aside from Solomon Coles High School, many other CCISD campuses received grants. We have attached images of other schools that received grants along where the funding will go towards.
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