Jennifer Foudray teaches biotechnology at Miami Valley Career Technology Center. She was one of three lucky classroom grant winners in the Educating with Excellence: Build GrowNextGen into your lesson planning webinar held in September.

“The biotechnology students would like to thank GrowNextGen for the $200 grant! I told the students to pick what they needed and propose it to me, and boy, did we get some cool stuff!” Foudray said.

Pictured is a table-top aquaponics system. The photo shows growth from just one week. One of Foudray’s students will be using this for her research project and will be growing wheat grass and micro radish seeds. She will compare nutrients in the radishes grown this way vs store bought. Foudray also purchased an automated fish feeder for their large tank for longer breaks.

Other grant money was used for green coffee beans, a thermal temperature gun, and a popcorn popper. This is for a chemistry of coffee unit Foudray created where the class will look at roasting methods, roast the beans, and then look at caffeine content. As part of this unit, the students also will be using the GNG lessons on soymilk coffee creamers and foams. The temperature gun will also be used for routine environmental monitoring.

Foudray also purchased some tensile for levitating orbs, “and of course some science stickers!”

“Thank you again for all of your support both inside and out of the classroom,” Foudray said.