54 AREA TEACHERS GET A+ : CASH GRANTS GIVEN FOR INNOVATIVE WORK.

Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer

Teachers across Ventura County are developing innovative strategies for kindergarten through high school classrooms and gaining recognition in the process from business sponsors.

The fourth annual Impact program recognized 54 teachers with 37 individual and team-teaching grants totaling $17,600 at an awards dinner May 1 in Oxnard.

Those classroom strategies are published in a catalog made available at public schools across the county to encourage other teachers to share ideas, said Phil Palbaum, the retired school administrator who coordinates the recognition program.

``We only give out (grants) based on quality. Those were the ones that passed the screening,'' he said.

Impact is a national program that relies entirely on business and corporate sponsors to support grants for the best and brightest teachers. Individual teachers receive $400 grants and teaching teams receive $600 grants.

The program is organized locally by the Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Office and the Ventura County Economic Development Association under a contract with Palbaum.

Teachers appreciate the recognition, said one of the Moorpark elementary schoolteachers awarded grants this year.

``I think teachers have a lot of innovative ideas, but we don't get recognized,'' said Michele Endres, who, along with Rick Yancey, received a team-teaching grant for work at Flory School. ``The purpose is to spread the ideas.''

The team was recognized for a physical-fitness program linking a regular class and a class of severely handicapped students each month. The program helps other students learn to work cooperatively with handicapped schoolmates.

A panel of teachers, business partners and PTA representatives select the winning entries for creativity, adaptability to other classrooms, and congruity with established curriculum.

The program has grown each year. During the program's first three years, 79 teachers received a total of $62,000.

More business and corporate sponsors are needed to meet the increasing number of innovative classroom strategies rewarded with grants, Palbaum said. Two dozen business and corporate sponsors supported this year's grants.

Palbaum said the program has an important selling point: ``All of the money collected for teacher grants goes right to the teachers. So the money stays in Ventura County.''

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IMPACT II AWARD WINNERS

The following is a listing of Simi Valley and Moorpark teachers who received grants in the fourth annual Impact II program recognizing innovative classroom strategies. Grants were $400 each for an individual teaching project and $600 for a team of teachers. The program is coordinated by the Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Office and the Ventura Economic Development Association and supported by funding from 24 business partners.

Ingrid Berman, Sycamore Elementary School, Simi Valley: ``Ferris Wheels and Merry-Go-Rounds.'' The geometry project has students work in teams and use art skills.

Denise Grap/Deni Lopez, Park View Center, Simi Valley: ``Camping With Your Class for Less Than $15.'' Inspired by the Coastal Wetlands Project, students work in diverse activities in school and while camping.

Frank Phillips, Moorpark High School, Moorpark: ``Flight - Getting Off the Ground.'' The nine-week science course gives ninth graders experience in physics, aerodynamics and biology of flight in living organisms and machines.

Kathy West, Chaparral Middle School, Moorpark: ``Students in Stitches.''Students design, cut and sew symbols, chosen after a study of the Civil War, to make quilts.

Darilyn DeMaria/Alice Quiros, Flory School, Moorpark: ``Quality Is a Hamburger.'' Students of all ages learn importance of quality control through lessons involving the familiar hamburger.

Deborah Kolodney, Moorpark High School, Moorpark: ``The Strain that Strained to Survive.'' Students are challenged to integrate English and science, think critically and use charts, sonnets and other innovative aids.

Ginger Brandenburg/Donna Fulgham, Moorpark High School, Moorpark: ``Literary Hall of Fame.'' Students critically evaluate positive and negative impacts of characters from literature, with achievements recognized at the end of the year.

Donna Fulgham, Moorpark High School, Moorpark: ``Build Your Own City.'' Working in groups, students create imaginary cities with specific types of government, commerce, arts and cultural information, then predict how characters from a piece of literature would survive.

Rick Yancey/Michele Endres, Flory School, Moorpark: ``Physical Fitness Carnival.'' Students in regular classrooms develop games adapted for severely handicapped students in a carnival setting to promote mutual respect and friendships.

John Kohlmeier/Mary Schultz/Karl Thieme, Sinaloa Junior High School, Simi Valley: ``Saving Planet Earth.'' Students study environmental problems by creating newsletters and a public-service video commercial.

Mary Schultz, Sinaloa Junior High School, Simi Valley: ``M&M's, A Mini-Model Museum and Magazine or the `Schultzonian.' '' Students construct a museum, decorate it, and publish a magazine from a period of history.

Carol Brummett, Big Springs School, Simi Valley: ``Happy Birthday Ice Cream Cone.'' Students develop skills in a variety of subject areas in comparing today's world with past centuries.

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Box: IMPACT II AWARD WINNERS (see text)