By SHANA SLOMA
shana@readthereporter.com
The Lilly Endowment has awarded two teachers from Westfield Washington Schools (WWS) with the 2024 Teacher Creativity Fellowship Program (TCFP) grant enabling them to renew their commitment to teaching through exploration and self-discovery.
Science teachers Amy Kempler and Bridget Wede were each awarded $15,000 to explore areas of interest, stimulate personal growth, and rekindle their dedication to teaching. Though diverse in their passions, both teachers are using the money to travel internationally this summer.
Kempler
Kempler has been teaching general science at Westfield Middle School for 24 years. As a veteran teacher, she plans to use her grant to jumpstart her enthusiasm for teaching by fully immersing herself in the cultures of Southern Europe and Southeast Asia.
Kempler’s itinerary includes an 8-day sailing excursion through towns and villages in Montenegro, a week of touring Croatia, and a six-week exploration of Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. While visiting Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, Kempler is also looking forward to the opportunity to visit her family living in the capital city.
“I used to see my cousin from Chicago at holidays, but he’s been living abroad for 24 years,” said Kempler. “I am looking forward to seeing him which would not have happened without this grant.”
But Kempler’s reason for choosing such a culturally dynamic trip goes beyond the desire for adventure or family reunions. She has many English as a Second Language (ESL) students in her classes. She feels empathetic to their struggle as a minority. Kempler is using her chance to travel to foreign lands and integrate herself into the culture as a means of better understanding the challenges of her ESL students.
“[Westfield’s] ESL population is definitely increasing,” Kempler said. “We get students who are brand new to the country. Many cannot speak English, and they do not know our customs. I will be among the minority on my trip. I have chosen to integrate myself into the local culture, so I can bring home that experience and better empathize with my ESL students.”
Wede
Wede, who teaches Biology at Westfield High School (WHS), is using her funding to positively impact her students in a different way.
Fostering her love of animals, Wede will begin a two-summer explorative journey this June in South Africa where she will learn about animal conservation.
During her two-week trip, she will spend her first week at Golola Rhino Orphanage learning about rhino conservation and caring for injured, ill and orphaned rhinos. Wede will spend the following week at Phinda, a “safe zone” game reserve, learning about tracking and conservation of protected animal populations such as elephants, cheetahs, lions, rhinos, and hippos.
Wede will return to teaching at WHS during the 2024-2025 school year where she plans to integrate her new knowledge and experience into her curriculum. After the school year, she will return to Africa where she will embark on a 30-day safari through Eastern Africa. Her adventure will take her to Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
“I wanted it to be about animals, and I really wanted to do a safari,” said Wede. “Safaris are so expensive that I would never be able to do this without the Lilly grant.”
Wede worked on her proposal for several years before submitting it for approval. She plans to share her knowledge of animal conservation to teach and inspire her students. Wede could have chosen many other opportunities to deepen her students’ understanding of biology. Wede explained why she chose this specific experience to inspire her and her students.
“It’s a really cool opportunity to be able to have it impact you personally, but also impact the kids,” said Wede. “I’m really excited about that.”
Lilly Endowments
The Lilly Endowment provides monetary gifts to approximately 100 education professionals throughout Indiana every year for immersive experiences meant to restore and revitalize the educator’s devotion to teaching. The competitive grant is open to Indiana classroom teachers, school counselors/social workers, instructional coaches, school-based librarians and media professionals, as well as principals and assistant principals. Any Indiana public, private, charter or online school is eligible for consideration.
To apply for the TCFP grant an applicant must have held one of the above positions for at least three consecutive years and hold a valid Indiana Professional Educator License. Each applicant must submit a proposal with a vision for renewal, budget, and timeline, as well as two letters of recommendation.
According to Kempler, many applicants must submit applications multiple times before being awarded a grant. She was previously denied on her first submission but was successful on her second.
Both teachers have meticulously planned their upcoming excursions and have chosen not to spend their funds on opulent travel accommodations for their flights to Africa and Asia.
“I looked up the cost for flying business class, and it was like an extra $3,000,” said Wede. “I just couldn’t do it.”
Kempler concurred, but she admitted that she may have to reconsider a business-class flight for the longest leg of her journey.
“I don’t need the wining and dining,” said Kempler. “But I’m older, so I might choose to have a little more luxury.”