The Oak Park Education Foundation is proud to be the August recipient of a $10,000 grant to expand Architecture Adventure into all ten Oak Park public schools. With the help of the Community Bank of Oak Park River Forest, we are inspiring the next generation of architects, citizens, designers and engineers.

Community Bank received 87 grant applications for the ten $10,000 grants.

The Oak Park Education Foundation will use its grant to conduct staff development for art teachers in architecture, introduce architecture curriculum to students, and purchase permanent and consumable materials for architecture projects in all ten schools. We will also be bringing architects into the schools, taking field trips to Oak Park and Chicago sites, and running an after-school club and summer camp in 2008!

OPEF is enhancing our popular Vex Robotics teams at both middle schools, thanks to a $4,000 grant awarded in September by the Oak Park-River Forest Community Foundation. The money will be used to add hardware and software to accommodate a total of 18 teams.

Exciting new plans for the after-school clubs, open to all middle school students (and including several all-girls' teams), also include computer programming workshops for team leaders that will dramatically boost the programming capabilities of students.

Vex Robotics is making science, math, engineering and technology as cool for kids as sports!

Thanks to Target and the Oak Park Area Arts Council, Art Start launches its 11th year providing artists in residence in one grade in every Oak Park elementary school.

The Oak Park Area Arts Council awarded Art Start a $2,500 grant, along with a letter of support saying:

"The committee is always impressed with the imagination behind your programming and the wonderful way in which you introduce children to art. Art Start has always found a means to support and supplement the arts programming in District 97, yet avoid duplicating efforts by the teachers at the schools."

Target recently granted Art Start a $2,000 award, which will help us provide supplies for the painters, sculptors, dancers, musician and other visual and performing artists who work with District 97 on projects that enhance their academic studies.