Superior Elementary school receives grant

SUPERIOR – For approximately the tenth year, Superior Elementary School was the recipient of the ExxonMobil Educational Alliance grant from Town Pump as a supplement to their math and science programs.

The school received $500 from the grant. According to Scott Kinney, principal of Superior Elementary School, the money will go towards the outdoor school program this spring. The program will feature an educational trip for the sixth grade class and a group of high school students who will act as counselors.

According to a press release, the school was very happy for the grant and liked how the corporations involved were dedicated to helping the schools. Their help in the educational goals of the school has been greatly appreciated.

“Superior Elementary gratefully acknowledges Town Pump and the ExxonMobil Corporation for assisting us in our mission in delivering a Superior education for our community’s children,” said the press release.

The camp will be held at Camp Savenac in the county’s west end. The camp is a decommissioned Forest Service Nursery where the kids will stay for a week of learning. Kinney described it as an outdoor learning experience where instructors from across the state come to teach the kids about the natural sciences and some of the area’s history.

“It’s a tremendous amount of fun,” said Kinney. “Every year is a little bit different, which makes it exciting for the teachers because it’s never just the same year over and over again.”

There are dormitories and facilities at the camp, which were used by Forest Service personnel when the nursery was active. The students will stay in these dorm buildings for the week as they learn.

The nursery was used extensively in reforesting efforts of the area after the 1910 fire. A piece of historic trivia noted by Kinney was most of the trees replanted after the fire were descendants of those grown at the nursery.

While every year is different, the curriculum will be heavily based on natural sciences with lessons on Native American culture and history. Kinney said this would be the 46th year the program will run. He also said students look forward to the trip every year.

While the students will be focused on studying the natural world, they will also learn about other subjects in the process. As an example, Kinney recalled how pond studies required a large amount of computational skill.

The trip was described as experience-based learning. Kinney said this was the capstone of the Superior Elementary experience and the kids would have plenty of hands-on activities. He also said the trip was important because it took school out of the classroom and allowed the kids to learn in an exciting, new environment.

This is not the first year the school has received the grant, nor is the outdoors school the only thing it has gone toward.

The grant has been offered for at least the past 10 years. Kinney said the school applied for the grant every year and has almost always received it. In the past the money went toward supply upgrades, facilities and outdoor school trips among other projects to supplement the school’s programs.

“It’s something we’re very thankful for,” said Kinney.

The class will go on the outdoor school trip on May 12 and stay through May 16.

The ExxonMobil Corporation funds the grant and gives money to retailers who show strong dedication to their communities. Town Pump had to meet special criteria before they were awarded the grant. One of these criteria was a recognized commitment to their customer’s needs.

The grant had a grand total of $33,500 to be awarded to schools across the state.