At the Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025 Board of Education meeting, the Board formally accepted the Madison Education Foundation (MEF)'s donation of $56,538 to fund fall cycle grants at all five Madison public schools.
"On behalf of MEF, I want to sincerely thank our Madison school community for their generosity this fall, which made it possible to fund so many amazing teacher-initiated grants across all five Madison public schools. We are grateful for this community's unwavering commitment to educational excellence."
- Marlena Fass, MEF Board President.
Your donations have funded the following grants:
Elementary:
One District One Book Reading Initiative ($416)- Elementary-wide reading program to support the Madison Reads district initiative. The book selected is “8 Class Pets, +1 Squirrel, +1 Dog, =Chaos”
Sam Wedelich Elementary Author Visit ($3,000)- Author/illustrator of the popular “Chicken Little” books will present at each of the elementary schools.
Book Tasting Event ($6,000)- Annual reading event at the elementary schools where students can preview 35-40 new books. These books go towards stocking our libraries.
Battle of the Books Competition ($2,900)- All elementary schools will participate in ‘America’s Battle of the Books’ reading incentive program.
Math Manipulatives ($12,000)- Manipulatives to support the Conquer Math teacher training program and district math initiatives.
On the Same Page - Writing Tools ($500)- Composition books/journals to support and improve elementary writing skills.
KRS/TJS:
Karaoke in the Music Classroom ($1,200): Karaoke machines to keep music education fun and relevant.
TJS:
Special Education Reinforcement Tools ($1,500): Reinforcement items to help special education students meet behavioral goals.
Sensory Oasis ($3,016)- A safe space for all learners to help with self regulation.
MJS:
Vex Robotics ($9,245): Vex Robotics Classroom kit to enhance the makerspace learning center at MJS.
Hydroponic Garden ($3,389): Hydroponic tower gardens to enhance environmental education.
Museum of Natural History Field Trip ($2,500): 6th grade trip to the Museum of Natural History.
Special Education Reinforcement Tools ($1,500): Reinforcement items to help special education students meet behavioral goals.
Rutgers Science Bus Interactive Lessons ($1,500): 7th graders will experience a hand-on, interactive science lesson taught by Rutgers graduate students in their mobile science lab.
Healthy Italia Field Trip ($1,295)- Italian students will participate in a culinary and cultural lesson at Healthy Italia in Madison.
Meteorologist John Marshall Assembly ($1,650): 6th grade Science assembly to complement the weather curriculum.
MET Museum Field Trip ($2,424): 7th graders tour the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.
MHS:
Great Gatsby Field Trip ($410): Trip for ESL students to attend the Great Gatsby play after reading the book.
Enhancing Biodiversity ($1,177): Enhancing the biology courtyard with aquatic plants and native amphibians and fish species.
Hatching Chicks ($500): Hatching chicks to learn about organism development.
Neuron Modeling Kits ($416): AP Psychology students will use the kits to study the biological basis of behavior.
About the Madison Education Foundation:
The Madison Education Foundation (MEF) awards grants to Pre-K-12 teachers for initiatives that energize the creative and academic lives of students but are above and beyond the school budget. Since its inception in 2003, MEF has awarded more than 700 grants totaling over $2,200,000. MEF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Donations can be mailed to PO Box 1093 Madison NJ 07940 or submitted online. Visit www.mefnj.org or e-mail info@mefnj.org for more information.