The Pinebelt Foundation is pleased to announce that the Board Giving Circle Grant has awarded over $17,000 in funds for various projects in the Pine Belt. The Board Giving Circle Grant, which was established in 2025, is fully funded by the foundation’s board members. This year’s grant was designated to support education for nonprofit organizations and schools.
The Lamar County Educational Foundation received a grant in the amount of $3,332.49. These funds will equip teachers with sensory tools that help students learn self-regulation skills. Using sensory tools as a vital component of social-emotional learning strategies can translate to lifelong skills for students.
For their Rural Student Journalism and Media Literacy Program, Mount Olive Attendance Center received $1,000. This project will give students hands-on learning experiences that strengthen literacy, critical thinking, and overall academic achievement. Participants will learn reporting, writing, video production, and media ethics; they will create news stories, newsletters, and short video segments that connect their learning to real-world communication.
The SFAC Academic Organization at South Forrest Attendance Center received $760 to assist with their Mississippi State Competitions for Beta Club and TSA (Technology Student Association). These funds will go toward registration fees and transportation costs associated with attending state competitions. These expenses are often prohibitive for families and the school, despite students meeting eligibility and qualification requirements.
Over $12,000 in grant money was presented to schools in the Wayne County School District. Beat Four School was awarded $2,500 for their Dignity Closet project, which will provide hygiene products as well as basic school uniform needs. The lack of these essential items creates profound daily obstacles to school attendance, classroom focus, and social-emotional well-being.
Waynesboro Riverview School received a $2,400 grant for their Riverview Reads Initiative. These funds will assist with the purchase of high-interest, grade-appropriate books for Pre-K through 8th grade, including picture books, early readers, chapter books, novels, and nonfiction texts. The initiative will also provide books that reflect diverse cultures, experiences, and perspectives to ensure inclusivity and student connection.
For their Industry Certification and Safety Access Initiative, the Wayne County Career and Technical Center was awarded $2,500. Their grant funds will be used to pay for certification preparation and testing for OSHA-10, CPR and First Aid, and ServSafe. By funding this training, along with providing safety gear scholarships, this initiative ensures equitable access to high-quality workforce readiness.
Finally, Wayne County High School was awarded $4,671.67 for their Color, Clarity, and Calculations project. The purpose of this program is to incorporate glass magnetic boards and TI-84 Plus CE color-coded graphing calculators into classrooms to enhance instructional clarity, increase student engagement, and improve mastery of complex mathematical and scientific concepts through modern, durable, and visually accessible tools. Jennifer Pippen, business manager for the Wayne County School District said, “Huge thanks to our local partners at the Pinebelt Foundation for the incredible grant support! This funding is a game-changer for our schools, allowing us to innovate and provide our students with the tools they need to succeed. We are proud to grow alongside such a supporting community.”
