At its November 2023 meeting, the Manheim Township Educational Foundation board of directors voted to approve the grant committee's recommendation to fund 16 grants, awarding nearly $87,000 to benefit Manheim Township students. These grants are made possible though EITC donations, memorial funds, institutional grants, general donations and contributions from MTEF Community Partners.

The Brecht PTO received $4,000 for an after-school drama club for students in kindergarten through second grade at Brecht Elementary. The club will offer students the opportunity to learn about the basic aspects of theater, attend a local theater performance and present their own show. A new screen backdrop for the stage will be used in the show as well as other school events.

Allyson Weitzel, Shannon Wright, Madison Gillman and Jill Milton were given $528 to extend access to the RazKids online reading resource to all first-grade students at Nitrauer Elementary. RazKids provides books that encompass various genres and interests, as well as different reading development levels.

Lindsay Capoferri received $3,500 for an artist-in-residence program featuring singer-songwriter Steven Courtney. During the fall of 2023, Courtney was scheduled to work with students at Reidenbaugh Elementary to write and produce a school song to be sung during quarterly celebration assemblies and other special events. The project aimed to build a stronger school culture and sense of belonging.

Omar Mohamed, author of the graphic novel "When Stars Are Scattered," was scheduled to visit Manheim Township thanks to a grant of $500 to Laura Houghton. Mohamed was scheduled to give a presentation to the seventh-grade class as well as the middle school's English language learners.

Kristen Rychener received $2,182 for environmental science and arts investigations for second- through fourth-graders at Bucher Elementary. Approximately 250 students will have the opportunity to learn about the environment through hands-on, expert-led environmental science lessons. Activities will be learning about animals and the environment, including the school's backyard stream, and nature journaling.

Mark Jordan at Landis Run was granted $455 for a culminating project for fifth-grade Excel students. The project invites students to apply concepts learned in math class, as well as critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving as they work together to build a house. The final product is expected to be on display during the school's annual Arts Night.

The Nitrauer PTO secured $2,500 for the creation of an outdoor, on-site composting area at the school, providing students with the opportunity to collect and compost food waste and brown material. Students will gain hands-on experience outside the classroom as they participate in and facilitate the compost lifecycle.

Using a $395 grant, Ashley Sutton's high school biology students will participate in the Tomatosphere Project from the First the Seed Foundation. Students will compare the germination rates of tomato seeds that have spent five weeks on the International Space Station to standard earth tomato seeds. After germination, students will transfer the plants to a hydroponic system for further growth and observation.

JoEllen Castronova received $7,110 to support a weekly after-school program of STEAM enrichment for English Language Learners and at-risk students at Bucher. Utilizing the resources of Snapology, a community provider of STEAM education, this project will provide students will opportunities to explore science, technology, engineering, art, and math through hands-on building and engineering challenges.

Karen Leisey and Brandi Swavely were granted $25,000, for a Creative Commons to be created during renovations to the high school library. The Creative Commons will allow students to hone their creative skills in a variety of ways independently or as part of curricular coursework. The space will be filled with moveable workspace tables, flexible seating, and items for creative expression such as 3D printers and art supplies.

Through a $7,800 grant to Laura Gingerich and Rachel Bucher Swank, the nationally recognized, locally based bluegrass band Colebrook Road will be the musical artist-in-residence during the 2024-25 school year. Students will learn about the history of bluegrass, play traditional bluegrass instruments, write music and lyrics, and more.

Elizabeth Edwards, Lindsay Capoferri, Barbara Kurtz, Noelle Duscha, Donna Buckwalter, and Lynn Longridge were awarded $11,750 to create kindergarten welcome bags for the 2024-25 incoming kindergarten students at all the district's elementary schools. The bags, to be distributed during kindergarten registration, will aim to promote a sense of belonging while also providing resources related to various academic and other skills.

A $15,390 grant will enable the purchase of a district-level license for all students in grades two through four to use Reflex Math, a program that helps students develop math fact fluency through mini lessons and games. Reflex Math also provides teachers with student data to guide their instruction. The grant was awarded to Gregory Seiger, Allison Zell, Meghan Nephin, Shelby Wright, and Ashley Keath.

A $3,200 grant to Noelle Duscha, Barbara Kurtz, and Laura Maranan will help to provide phonics kits at Reidenbaugh. The kits come with a variety of magnetic tiles that allow for the development of skills that students need to be successful readers. The kits will be used in the kindergarten classes and for Tier 2 instruction.

Zach Mussmon received $2,500 to help support the high school quiz bowl team's participation in regional and possibly national competitions. Quiz bowl provides students with opportunities to apply their study skills and academic prowess in a team setting where success requires problem-solving, teamwork, and collaboration.

A project led by Manheim Township High School senior Vraj Parikh received $180 to create a fully student-run, open-access journal to showcase the engineering and control-system ideas and innovations created by fellow students. The bi-annual journal will be fully online and will be applicable for an ISSN-DOAJ journal accreditation once its first issue is published.