During its 25-year history, the Killeen ISD Education Foundation has seen an impressive increase in all forms of donations received and gifts given.
What hasn’t changed are the grateful responses of those who receive the bounty of generous community donors.
On Tuesday, three days before the start of the district’s two-week holiday break, teachers in 15 KISD schools celebrated 22 grants worth a total of $76,801.
Grant patrol photo gallery: https://www.flickr.com/photos/killeenisd/albums/72177720330958492
Like children unwrapping treasure, excited teachers squealed, cheered and teared up with delight as surprise check presentations played out in their classrooms.
Two separate grant patrols made up of foundation board members, school district administrators and campus staff made the happy deliveries of checks that will make possible a huge array of classroom activities.
The two largest grants are annual gifts that help fund districtwide events.
A $10,000 grant purchases books and other supplies for a reading contest among elementary schools called the Battle of the Books. A $9,042 grant offsets the costs of the annual Science Olympiad among KISD elementary schools.
Other grants address creative activities to motivate students to read, using Lego building blocks and virtual reality in learning, a club committed to spreading kindness, a digital graphics class’s effort to celebrate campus organizations and a host of others.
Education Foundation Director Leslie Gilmore introduced members of the foundation board and donors to teacher recipients and invited the grant winners to explain their projects.
Cedar Valley Elementary fifth grade teacher Odila Owens, in her 22nd year teaching, received her first foundation grant aimed at using technology to build student interest in science.
“I thought this would be the most amazing thing to get the kids using force in motion with Legos and do some problem solving to get then engaged. That’s what we need in the classroom. It’s exciting,” she said.
“It’s so amazing. I’ve seen other people win grants but never dared to do it myself. The community gives us the opportunity to do this. Having this support is unrivaled.”
One of those big community donors, HEB, gave $30,000 to the Education Foundation earlier in the year for use in classroom grants.
Graciela Velazquez, Fort Hood area coordinator for HEB, participated in one of the grant patrols. “One of our really big pillars is education and making sure our educators are loved on and have what they need,” she said.
“These teachers have visions of what they want to bring into their classrooms. These grants are giving back to that vision and those programs they will bring in. That will make sure kids can learn in a very dynamic way.”
“It’s really special to see the students just as surprised as their teachers and they start cheering when they see what they are winning.”
“We love getting to surprise our amazing staff members with grants especially during the holiday season,” Gilmore said.
“It is a blessing to do the work each day to secure community partnerships to enhance the classroom and provide more opportunities for our students. Seeing teachers and other staff with students celebrating together is a sweet reminder that our community is behind us in serving our schools.”
Fall 2025 Education Foundation grants include the following:
Clifton Park ES “Let’s Book ‘Em Danno!!” Michelle Cook $4,644 and “The Ripple Grant” Tora Haws $1,399.
Killeen ES “Music Class Tubanos” Hilary Webking $1,889.
Killeen HS “Libros and Literacy Grant” Maegen Cockrell $1,456.
Ira Cross ES “Big Reads for Bigger Kids” Barbara McYoung $2,437 and “Every Child a Musician” Mayumi Thomas $1,409.
Cavazos ES “Read & Ride” Tasha LaBoy $3,576.
Cavazos ES “Zen Den” Ashley Manry $4,680.
Nolan MS “A STEAM Stampede” Marissa Ocampo $4,902.
Harker Heights HS “Making it Real” Melissa Supak $549.
Union Grove MS “The Mindful Moment” Christina Davis $2,223.
Ellison HS “The Amazing Book Journey” Laura Gregory $3,180.
Reeces Creek ES “Blocks, Books & Breakthroughs” Rayanne Polm $4,811.
Saegert ES “Melodies in the Making” Lori Kostencki $768.
Cedar Valley ES “Building Minds Through Motion” Odila Owens $2,399.
Timber Ridge ES “Building Brighter Thinkers” Charlynn Loeffler $4,398.
Chaparral HS “Expanding Access to Photography Experiences” James Eubanks $2,568 and “Learning Without Limits” Barbara Kelly $5,000.
JD Aycock MS “Turning Pages” Leslie Rowe $515.
KISD Curriculum & Instruction “Teach, Test, Triumph” $4,956 and “Elementary Science Olympiad” $9,042.
“Battle of the Books” Multi School Participation $10,000.