Education Grant WinnerBonnie Harker

Reading and writing is an area where students can be both creative and imaginative, manifesting ideas that furthers their skillset, while bringing it all to life. For some students facing reading and writing challenges, however, it can be difficult to engage and really enjoy what others get to experience.

Bonnie Harker, educator at La Vernia Intermediate School, wanted to provide her students who struggle with dyslexia the resources they needed to make reading and writing fun again. Thanks to Power of the Dollar^® members, she was awarded a $1,000 grant in December 2024 for her “Level the Playing Field” idea, which she then used to purchase slant boards to help students with their writing, headphones with microphones to further their reading comprehension, and thermal printers to aid with their spelling capabilities.

“Any time that a child is proud of something they do or use something that’s going to make their lives easier, I don’t think there’s anything that compares to that feeling,” said Harker. “Sometimes school is not easy, and so if we can make something exciting for them, it keeps them engaged even more.”

Her students can’t get enough of the resources she was able to get for them and have been a big hit in her classroom. Improving their dexterity and speed, students are overjoyed in seeing their progression unfold right in front of them—so much so, that they’ll come into her classroom to ask to use the materials in other classes! These helpful items are also making waves and are being utilized across the entire district who wants to use them—the impact has been tremendous and has exceeded initial expectations.

“This is their safe place during the same and is what makes them happy,” she said. “This has worked well; I didn’t expect it to work so well in such a short amount of time!”