Mitsubishi Cement Corporation is committed to supporting our local community. In the spirit of our commitment to support the Lucerne Valley community, the Mitsubishi Cement Corporation Educational Foundation was established as a non-profit 501(c)3 in January of 2007. The goal of the Foundation is to develop and implement programs that will enhance the educational experience currently available to the students and teachers of Lucerne Valley, with an emphasis on natural and applied sciences.
Funds raised by the MCC Educational Foundation are awarded each year to the students and educators of Lucerne Valley in the form of Scholarships and Mini-grants. The Foundation’s Scholarships are single year scholarships for current high school students who are Lucerne Valley residents and are continuing their education to achieve a degree in a related field of science. Those scholarships are renewable for up to three years if the student continues high performance in their course of study. Mini-Grants are awarded throughout the school year to Lucerne Valley teachers for projects or programs that are designed and implemented by students with faculty support. Projects including, but not limited to, computer software or hardware, science equipment, library books, science studies, classroom materials, field trips and assemblies are just a few examples for which mini-grants are awarded.
For this fall MCCEF approved close to $30,000 of mini grants for our classrooms in Lucerne Valley Unified School District. Grants approved included applications for:
• Non-Fiction books to support Science
• Hands on manipulatives for math
• Literature selections for interventions that support science
• Field trips to Science based locations
• Magna tiles for our kindergartners
• STEM inside the classroom by using Sphero programable robots for 7th graders
• A science Visual Art Lab for our High School Art Class
• Hands on manipulatives for math
• Literature selections for interventions that support science
• Field trips to Science based locations
• Magna tiles for our kindergartners
• STEM inside the classroom by using Sphero programable robots for 7th graders
• A science Visual Art Lab for our High School Art Class
Several field trips were highly commended by the Foundation but the dates fell within the range for application for Spring Mini Grants. One such application was a trip to the Rainbow Basin Natural Area north of Barstow. This trip was highly praised and the date will fall in the range for a future application.
Superintendent Peter Livingston stated, “This time frame for the Mini Grants was highly participated in by our teachers of Lucerne Valley. There were many creative applications that were considered. Our teachers did an amazing job in their creativity for grants. I would like to thank the MCCEF on behalf of Lucerne Valley Unified School District for their support of our programs.”
“MCCEF sponsors our fifth grade students for science camp yearly,” Student Educational Services Coordinator Vici Miller added. “They provide the cost of the bus and $100 for each student attending. This is a once in a lifetime experience for our students.”
Board member Tom Courtney and Student Education Services Coordinator Vici Miller are also members along with Superintendent Peter Livingston on the MCCEF board.