Program areas at Bright Minds Foundation / Howard Co Public Schools Education Fndn
Resources for Learning:Bright Minds works to remove barriers that prevent students from fully accessing and participating in their education. Bright Minds and HCPSS are providing emergency assistance to students experiencing homelessness in order to reduce education disruption, absenteeism, and dropout. Bright Minds is enhancing HCPSS career and technical education by helping to build a new Digital Fabrication Lab at the Applications & Research Laboratory. Bright Minds is expanding STEM education through support for 3D printers and other important technology. Since 2020, Bright Minds has raised more than $460,000 for more than 62,000 critical educational resources that have reached students in all county schools.
Student Scholarships:Bright Minds helps students access and prepare for success in post-secondary education. We help high school students earn college credits and explore career options through the JumpStart dual-enrollment program with Howard Community College by providing books/course fee scholarships for students. We also administer third-party scholarships - reaching 22 students this year - to make post-secondary education more accessible. In total, Bright Minds has provided 477 HCPSS students with over $130,000 in scholarships so they can access college education.
Teacher Support & Development:Bright Minds Classroom Grants help educators pilot innovative instructional projects that support student success, enrich teaching practices, strengthen school communities, and pilot important projects that can be considered for broader implementation. Since 2009, Bright Minds has awarded $186,000 to more than 120 educators. Bright Minds also administers Teacher Externships which provide summer workplace learning opportunities that strengthen teaching relevance and educator retention. During the first year of the program, four area employers hosted externs.
Early Childhood Literacy:Only 54% of Howard County children demonstrated kindergarten readiness in 2023 (MD Dept. of Ed.) and delays in the early years of education are difficult to overcome. Bright Minds is the local affiliate for Dolly Partons nationally-recognized Imagination Library. Our Read With Me-Howard County program sends participating children an age-appropriate book each month from birth through age five. The program builds emergent literacy skills, inspires a love of reading, encourages parent-child interaction, and prepares children for kindergarten. More than 2,456 county children received 42,551 books thus far.