Arlington Education Foundation Announces $57K In Grants To APS

ARLINGTON, MA —The Arlington Education Foundation (AEF) has announced that it has awarded $57,000 in grants to Arlington Public Schools for work on the district's Strategic Plan and for digital resources for high school performing arts instrumentalists.

The AEF, according to its website, supports continuous improvement and innovation in APS by enabling educational professionals to expand the district's capabilities, enrich the curriculum and research, build and implement 21st-century programs that ensure every student is prepared for future success.

In its latest round of funding, the AEF has committed $42,000 to form Working Groups (WGs) to develop and support the processes through which the Strategic Plan will be implemented. The groups will consist of building leaders, directors, coordinators and other stakeholders such as students, teachers, and family members.

According to school officials, the WGs will assist in driving the work of the school system over the next five years.

"The teams will gather information and plan and implement actions in their schools and departments. As part of a Combined Learning Community (CLC), the members will share progress, build connections across initiatives and engage in collaborative problem-solving around shared challenges," officials said.

A second AEF grant, for $15,000, has been awarded, to the Performing Arts Department for the purchase of iPads that will be used by Arlington High School instrumental groups.

"These resources will replace the paper sheet music that currently has to be printed out for each student, decreasing waste and eliminating loss of materials," officials said in a statement.

The statement continued: "Using this technology for performing and studying musical scores is now preferred by many professional musicians. AHS students will be able to research and upload music to sight-read instantly, use the iPad to compose and arrange music and share files with teachers and classmates. It also gives the students experience using a technology that is expanding in the world of music."

The iPads will be shared between the approximately 169 students currently in the AHS band and orchestra, officials said.