The Bixby Educational Endowment Foundation (BEEF) is proud to announce the award of more than $127,000 in Teacher Grants for the 2025-26 school year, empowering Bixby educators to turn innovative ideas into meaningful learning experiences for students. These grants inspire creativity, encourage excellence, and provide opportunities for teachers across all grade levels and subject areas to enrich their classrooms in unique and impactful ways.
9th Grade Center
Jasmine Nevills - Cooking for Culture
Jesse Sutmiller - Puzzles, Pages, & Play: A Screen-Free Bixby 9th Grade Library Initiative
Madison Eckert - Empowering Girls with Pilates
Patty Nolan - Bringing Literature to Life
Bixby Learning Center
Natalie Burnham - Virtual Reality for Real Life Learning!
Central Elementary
Alison Beach - “Hands-On Hearts: Illuminating Learning Through Play”
Anna Black - Central Elementary Sensory Garden
Anna Black - Central Elementary Reset Room
Jamie Copenhaver - Big Moves, Big Fun!
Julie Lacy - Manipulative are Fun to Explore
Karla Graves and Chelsea Stamm - Chain Reactions & Creative Thinking: A Dominoes STEAM Exploration
Central Intermediate
Recorder Revolution
Megan Moore - Amplifying Voices: The 6th Grade Digital Storytelling Studio
Paula Clayton - “Hands-On Geography” — Maps, Globes & Relief Maps for Grades 4–6
Paula Clayton - One-Class, One-Book: Whole-Class Novel Sets to Build Literacy, Community, and Critical Thinking
District (IC's & EdTech)
Allison Morris - Crisis Care Kits
Kayla Cardwell - Phonics Fun-damentals
East Elementary
Cari Griffin - The "Write" Stuff: Inspiring Writers in Pre-K
Daniel Zehder - Station Day
Jaclyn Snow - Writing Ourselves Into The Future
Jill Davis - Classroom Library
Kathrine Weinacht - Sparking Wonder! Dramatic Play in Pre-K
Pam Stevenson - Bringing Music to Life: Enhancing Elementary Music Education with Resources and Instruments
East Intermediate
Evelyn Herring - Building a Hands-On Science Lab for 6th Grade Discovery
Julie Schmidt - Canvas and Clay: A Proposal to Help Revitalize Our School’s Art Program
Megan Parenteau - Focus and Flourish: Resources for Emotional Regulation and Growth
Melanie Ankersheil - Calming Equipment for Counselors at EI
Rachel Dodson - Keyboards Galore!
Victoria Foster - Help Us Build More Bots at EI!
High School
Dakota Moran - Bixby Strength & Performance Technology Upgrade
Heather Thatcher - Strengthening Rhetorical Analysis and Argument Through Collaboration & Modeling
Julie Jankowski - Shaping the Future: A Grant for Hands-On Learning in Ceramics
Tiger West - STEAM Drone, drone equipment and supplies
Middle School
Charbrice Evans - Design Your Future Here
Kristie Coggins - Hover Crafts: Air Spartan Project
Rachel Cosby - Lights, Camera, iPad! Empowering the Next Generation of Media Creators
Simon MacFarlane - Enya NOVA GO Guitars for Middle School
North Elementary
Shannon Burns - Voices & Vision: Diverse Stories for Young Readers and Writers
Tamra Bird - The Secret Stories
North Intermediate
Andrea Burgett - Real-Time Language Translators
April Weller - One Book Leads to Another: Power of Series Reading
Bryson Miller - Orff Instrument Revival
Keri Robinson - BNI Robotics Team
Keri Robinson - TAG Chompsaw and Vex AIM
Robyn Tally - Picture Books and Their Influence on Math
Stacie Lindsey - BNI/BWI Counselors (two school sites)
Tyler Randall - Impressions That Last: A Gelli Printing Project
West Elementary
Becky Dukes - Differentiated Art Experiences through Printmaking and Architecture
Brooklyn Carothers - Enhancing Student Engagement
Caitlin Diffee - Structured Literacy Instructional Tools
Cristina Heald - The Little Literacy Lab
Hailee Speir - Science of Reading Strategies
Megan Kesterson - West Step-Up Recorders
Neely Scully - Listening for Little Learners
Shelly Musser -”Every Student Learns" in Our ESL Classroom
West Intermediate
Amanda Walehwa - Sensory Regulation for High Level Needs
Molli Worthington - Funding For School Wide Visual Art
Sarah Carr - Keyboards for West
Victoria Meadows - Meadows and Pyles STEM Scholars
Thanks to the unwavering support of local businesses, families, and community members, BEEF has invested more than $3.3 million in teacher grants and scholarships since its inception. As the foundation looks ahead to another exciting year, it remains committed to expanding educational opportunities by funding new grants and awarding scholarships to Bixby Public Schools seniors.
This year's grants support a wide variety of hands-on and engaging learning opportunities, including robotics, drones, STEM projects, phonics programs, classroom libraries, digital storytelling, dramatic play, ceramics, sensory gardens, musical instruments, keyboards, pilates, puzzles, maps and globes, hovercrafts, cooking experiences, clay projects, and more. These investments help spark curiosity, foster creativity, and enhance student engagement both inside and outside the classroom.
Want to make a difference for Bixby teachers and students? Consider supporting BEEF through its annual Century Club Campaign. Every contribution goes directly toward future grants, helping bring even more educational opportunities to Bixby schools. In addition, Mabrey Bank generously matches Century Club donations up to $20,000 each year, a goal BEEF has successfully achieved for the past 40 years.
Donations can be made online through the BEEF Donation Page. For information about mailing a contribution or learning more about the foundation, visit the BEEF Foundation Website.
To follow this year's grant recipients and see how these projects come to life in classrooms throughout the school year, connect with BEEF on Facebook and Instagram, and help spread the word by sharing our posts with others.