Reidland Middle in the running for $25K State Farm grant

By DAVID B. SNOW dsnow@paducahsun.com

Reidland Middle School is in the running to be one of 40 schools nationwide to receive a $25,000 grant from State Farm, and local people can help.

Genevieve Postlethwait, the grant writer for the McCracken County School District, applied for acceptance into the State Farm Neighborhood Assist program that will give $25,000 grants to the top 40 vote-getting projects.

Some 2,000 applications came in for the grant program, and the top 200 — including four in Kentucky — made it to the voting round.

Postlethwait applied for Reidland Middle School’s 21st Century Program to be the benefactor of the State Farm grant.

“Reidland Middle lost its 21st Century grant, which they’ve had for a decade,” she said. “The year before last, the state awarded 46 21st Century grants; last year, they only awarded 14.”

RMS Assistant Principal Dylan Sonnek said the 21st Century Program allows several students to get help with homework and more.

“It gives us the opportunity to reach kids and help them with homework,” he said. “Other things, too, like social, emotional, wellbeing — things of that nature.

“It allows us to create and build relations with kids, and it gives kids a place to go after school rather than just go home.”

Sonnek said the 21st Century Program includes clubs and sports, but its importance is in reaching students who usually don’t take part in group activities and help them make friends.

“The grant would go toward getting kids homework help, like tutoring,” he said. “We’re also going to have a counselor who stays during the 21st Century Program. If kids need to talk to someone — if they’re going through situations that they can’t deal with — they’re going to have that opportunity during that after-school program.”

Postlethwait said she applies for the grant every year.

“State Farm does this every year,” Postlethwait said. “A certain day every year, they take the first 2,000 applications, and they shut it — the first 2,000 applications only.

“From that 2,000, they choose 200 finalists. They are all community projects: school-related or neighborhood projects or safety — a wide variety of projects.”

After 200 applicants are selected, there is a voting period, allowing people to vote for their favorite project. Voting is done online, and there are up to 10 votes allowed for each email address.

To vote in the State Farm Neighborhood Grant program, go to neighborhoodassist.com. Voting began at midnight today and will run through Aug. 27.