OXFORD, Miss. ― The Tennessee Valley Authority, working in partnership with Bicentennial Volunteers Incorporated, a TVA retiree organization, is awarding more than $55,000 in grants to educators in Mississippi public schools to help develop science, technology, engineering, and math education projects.

The competitive STEM classroom grant program, operated in partnership with Battelle Education, received more than 290 grant requests from across TVA’s seven-state service territory.

“This is the second year we offered this program to the entire Valley and we saw a major increase in grant applications this year,” said Rachel Crickmar with TVA’s Community Engagement program. “There is a demand in the Valley for workforce development through STEM education and I am proud of the way TVA and our retirees are responding to that demand.”

The grant program provides teachers at schools served by a TVA partner local power company an opportunity to apply for funding up to $5,000. Preference was given to grant applications that explored TVA’s primary areas of focus: environment, energy, economic and career development and community problem solving.

“We must invest in training Mississippians to equip them with the skills necessary for open jobs. And these jobs are changing,” said Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves. “The jobs that paid well 50 years ago, are not the jobs of today, and skilled trades are soaring. I applaud TVA for preparing the next generation of Mississippi workers for the jobs of the future.”

The Mississippi schools and projects awarded 2020 TVA STEM grants are:

• Alcorn Central High School (Corinth, Miss.): Students will use 3D print essential items for various projects across the course of the semester.
• Weir Elementary School (Weir, Miss): Funds provide a start-up program for educators to share reusable STEM resources across the school.
• Itawamba Career and Technical Center (Fulton, Miss): Students will gain hands-on experience in the Automotive Service, Collision Repair, Construction, Health Science and Welding.
• Itawamba Agricultural High School (Fulton, Mississippi): Educators will incorporate 3D printing design projects into high school curriculum.
• Fairview Attendance Center (Golden, Miss): Third through eighth grade students will use camcorders and laptops for recording, editing footage and creating digital projects.
• Lafayette High School (Oxford, Miss): Students will use starter kits including resistors and controller boards to communicate electrical principals in multiple formats.
• Shannon Middle School (Shannon, Miss): Funds will be used to expand First Tech Robotics Team to lower grades in the school district.
• Tupelo Career-Technical Center (Tupelo, Miss): Educators will conduct 4-day camp for fifth through eighth grade students to explore STEM pathways.
• Milam Elementary School (Tupelo, Miss): Educators will use Little Bits coding tools to challenge students’ electronic engineering design thinking using math, science, computer technology, circuitry and coding.
• Columbus Municipal School District (Columbus, Miss): Funds will be used for computer science curriculum across the school district, including computing systems, networks and internet.
• Aberdeen Elementary School (Aberdeen, Miss): Educators will create a “Makerspace” in the schools to provide hands-on ways to encourage students to design, build, explore and investigate.
• Neshoba Central Middle School (Philadelphia, Miss): Students will use drone technology as they learn about STEM pathways.
• New Albany Middle School (New Albany, Miss): The IMAGINE STEM lab will provide students the opportunity to explore stations related to Advanced Manufacturing, Healthcare and Logistics.
• Nanih Waiya Attendance Center (Louisville, Miss): Students will use Raspberry Pi, a low cost, hand-sized computer to program and code.

The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power companies serving nearly 10 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation.