At its November 2025 meeting, the Manheim Township Educational Foundation Board of Directors voted to fund 25 grants, totaling $107,844, benefiting students in all nine Manheim Township School District school buildings, grades K-12. Made possible through donations of businesses and individuals, and contributions from EITC participants and MTEF Community Partners, these grants will impact approximately 6,000 Manheim Township students.
Manheim Township High School
- Ben Hartranft, autism advocate and motivational speaker, will present to the student body with the goal of fostering greater awareness, empathy, and inclusion.
- Sharon Schaefer – Grades 9-12, All Students
- A self-contained, no-plumbing sink to complement the classroom kitchen set-up and support full implementation of the Work-Based Learning program’s kitchen safety, cooking, cleaning, and hygiene goals.
- Ashley Cooper – Work-Based Learning
- Sankt Nikolaus and Krampus costumes and book to help bring the German cultural tradition of Nikolaustag to life for students enrolled in German courses.
- Rebecca Richter – Grades 9-12, German Classes
- Science Olympiad lab supplies, building materials, and tournament fees for team-based, STEM competitions featuring events in scientific fields including biology, chemistry, physics, earth science, and engineering.
- Sarah Neuville & Michael Zettlemoyer – Grades 9-12, Extracurricular Activity
- Student Grant: Robotics equipment and materials to support the transition from FIRST Tech Challenge to Technology Student Association robotics competitions.
- Ethan Betz, Thomas Bowman, Jackson Good, Kai Hurst, Anh Nguyen – Grade 9-12, Extracurricular Activity
Manheim Township Middle School
- Games and fun seating for the Middle School Rewards Lounge, a PBIS reward option students can select to help reinforce positive behavior choices and dedication to academics.
- Kara Frazier – Grades 7-8, All Students
- Traditional Mexican pan de muerto, “bread of the dead,” to enhance students’ understanding and appreciation of the cultural traditions surrounding Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead).
- Hermenegildo Blanco – Grades 7-8, Spanish Classes
- Nystrom Complete U.S. History Map Set to augment classroom instruction, helping students to visualize migration patterns, territorial expansion, and economic and societal trends from Native American societies through the Civil War.
- Brian Delany – Grade 8, Social Studies Classroom
- Ripple Creators, an eight-week program that provides students with immersive experiences in the field of music production through direct instruction, self-reflection, and career exploration activities.
- Paul Barr & Christine Resh – Grades 7-8, Special Education
- Coffee maker, coffee, and other supplies to support the creation of Common Grounds, a classroom coffee station where students practice real-world skills, build community, and celebration inclusion by working together to run a small business.
- Samantha Buckwalter – Grades 7-8, Autistic Support
- Chess board and clocks for students to use to prepare for participation in the Lancaster Chess Friendship League competitions.
- Eric Anderson – Grades 7-8, Extracurricular Activity
- LEGO® SPIKETM Prime kits (2) to support the newly established Robotics Club which invites students explore the fundamentals of robotics in a small group setting.
- Dakota Stump – Grades 7-8, Extracurricular Activity
Landis Run Intermediate School
- Visiting Artist Program: Musician Julia Kamanda will work with music classes to combine social studies topics with instruments and music to help students explore global cultures through rhythm, song, and storytelling.
- Amy Houck & Will Gillis – Grades 5-6, All Students
- A re-envisioned, learner-centered spaced within the LRIS library where learners can explore, collaborate, connect, and access STEM resources, including technology, to augment instruction and hands-on learning opportunities
- Tiffany Willard, Will Gillis, Jackie Druck, & Nick Scales – Grades 5-6, All Students
- Wipebooks, reusable collaborative learning whiteboards, to facilitate integration of concepts from the book “Building Thinking Classrooms” which explores the benefits of vertical thinking space to promote more active student engagement and collaboration in solving deeper thinking mathematical tasks.
- Kelley Romyn, Becky Maryott, & Emily Wood – Grades 5-6, All Students
- Shared Waters starter kits (2) to support the integration of the program’s highly engaging, hands-on lessons into 5th grade science classes, providing students with a lens to examine global and local waterways and design an action plan to improve watershed health in their local community.
- Rebecca Hyde, Tom Sauer, Allison Corcoran, & Michael Crain – Grade 5, All Students
- LEGO® SPIKETM Prime kits, expansion sets, engineering notebooks, and robot game table to support students’ participation in the FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge, a hands-on STEM program where students work in teams to build and program LEGO® robots that solve real-world challenges.
- Jackie Druck, Mark Jordan, Michael Crain – Grades 5-6, Extracurricular Activity
- Two class sets of the math card game Adsumudi for sixth grade math classes to use to challenge students to think creatively and hone their math facts while playing a fun game with their classmates.
- Christopher Ehst – Grade 6, Math Classes
Manheim Township Elementary Schools
- Class set (30) of Ozobots for each elementary school (6) for classroom teachers to integrate into math, ELA, science, and social studies instruction to spark innovation, foster creativity, ignite curiosity, and build cross-curricular connections.
- Ashley Keath – Grades K-4, All Elementary Schools
- Suno AI Pro Plan subscription to create kid-friendly songs with lyrics that help teach and review ELA, social studies, and science concepts in a fun and engaging way.
- Natalie Mundorf – Grade 1, Bucher Elementary
- Secret Stories phonics resources, including stories, posters, music, and videos, to share brain-based strategies and engaging “secret” patterns that make abstract phonics patterns more meaningful and memorable for young learners.
- Kayla Ketchum – Kindergarten, Nitrauer Elementary
- Books written in languages spoken by students but underrepresented in the Nitrauer library as well as basic English Language Learning books to enhance the World Language collection and help provide English Learner students with access to culturally relevant literature.
- Laura Heverling & Amy Wertman – Grades K-4, Nitrauer Elementary
- Basic kitchen baking tools and ingredients to support the integration of new life skills cooking activities into a K-4 Autism Support classroom to help students practice following multi-step directions, identify and classify kitchen items, and practice kitchen safety skills.
- Taylor Trigg – Autism Support K-4, Nitrauer
- Autism Steam Roller to help support students’ sensory needs by providing deep pressure simulation to aid in calming, improve focus, and enhance motor planning skills and body awareness.
- Caroline Newell – Autism Support K-4, Reidenbaugh